`Ganna’ (sugarcane) got better of ‘Jinnah’ and ‘Danga’ (Muzaffarnagar riot) as the BJP suffered another crushing defeat in the battle of bypoll – second in last two months. It lost its seats to the united opposition raising a big question over organizational capabilities of state BJP chief Dr Mahnedra Nath Pandey and efficacy of his delivery system.

There was a stunned silence in state BJP office as party workers preferred to stay away. One of the party spokesmen was sitting in an ante room trying to absorb the shock with `laiya –channa’. “What can we say? This loss, particularly in Kairana was unexpected,” he said.

He admitted that party might had faltered in gauging peple’s mood. “Many issues like petrol price hike went against us. The worst part is that the government did well in payment of cane still the opposition was able to spread words about non-payment which stuck,” he said.

The election result has made it clear that there was decisive shift of Jat votes from BJP to RLD. “Those who voted for us in Nagar Nigam and Assembly, this time voted for RLD. Muslims consolidated against the ruling party and the revival of Jat-Muslim combine with Dalit throwing their weight revived the old Muslim –Ahir-Jat-Gujjar and Dalit Jatav formula,” he said.

This defeat came close on the heels of party’s drubbing at Gorakhpur and Phulpur bypolls in March after these seats fell vacant following resignation of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and his deputy Keshav Prasad Maurya after both were elected to Legislative Council.

The defeat is a major setback for the BJP as both Kairana Parliamentary seat and Noorpur Assembly seats belonged to them and the ruling party played the sympathy card by fielding family members of deceased MP and MLA respectively.

The Kairana seat fell vacant after the death of BJP MP Hukum Singh, whose daughter Mriganka Singh was the party candidate. In Noorpur too, Avni Singh ,widow of late BJP MLA Lokendra Singh, was the party candidate.

The BJP wanted to win this election at any cost and therefore around half a dozen senior ministers camped in these constituencies. Transport minister Swantra Deo Singh and Rural Development minister Mahendra Singh were made in-charge. Senior party leaders including organisational secretary Sunil Bansal and general secretary Vijay Bahadur Pathak held a series of meeting to ensure party’s victory.

In the rallies party also tried to whip up communal passion by raging Muzaffarnagar riots. Yogi in his rallies blamed Akhilesh for those riots but he failed to consolidate voters in their favour.

Putting up a braved face, BJP’s Kairana candidate Mriganka Singh said that many voters did vote for BJP this time. “I would like to congratulate the rival candidate. The alliance has emerged strong and now we have to prepare better for future,” she said.

The Kairana bypoll is the fourth Lok Sabha by-election in the state since 2014. Apart from Gorakhpur and Phulpur, a by-election was also held for Mainpuri seat vacated by SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav in 2014.

In the bypoll, Mainpuri seat was won by SP candidate Tej Pratap Singh Yadav. However the BJP won teh bypoll at Sikendra Assembly seat.

'Ganna' gets better from the defeats of BJP