UP: SP decimates BSP, Congress finishes fourth

Lucknow: The Samajwadi Party (SP) has crossed the half-way mark in Uttar Pradesh to rout the Mayawati government and come back to power in the state after five years. The win has ensured the fourth stint of Mulayam Singh Yadav as the Chief Minister of country’s most populous state.

With the results of just a few seats yet to come in, the Samajwadi Party has secured a simple majority winning 206 seats. The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has won on 69 seats while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stood third by bagging 42 seats. The Congress stood fourth with just 33 seats.

Akhilesh Yadav, the man who led the Samajwadi Party to victory in the 2012 Assembly elections, thanked the people of Uttar Pradesh, assuring them that the party would improve the law and order situation in the state.

He said, "I thank the voters of Uttar Pradesh. All castes and communities have voted for the Samajwadi Party and we will work for the development of Uttar Pradesh. Law and order will be our top priority."

The young leader also hit out at the Mayawati government saying there was massive corruption during her regime and to hide it, there were killings as well.

Party supremo Mulayam Singh said that credit for the win of the Samajwadi Party went to his son Akhilesh and the people of Uttar Pradesh.

Meanwhile, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi, who had campaigned hard to turn the fortune of his party in the state, conceded defeat and also took the responsibility of it.

"I was leading and we lost. It is my responsibility," said Rahul, adding that the poor performance of the party was a "very good lesson" for him. He also blamed the lack in the organisational structure of the party for the dismal performance.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), meanwhile, said that only regional parties such as the BSP and the SP had emerged strongly in Uttar Pradesh. Party president Nitin Gadkari also took a dig at the Congress, saying that the UP elections was a prestige issue for it.

He further said, "In UP, people have gone against the BSP and they supported regional parties," adding that the results of five states clearly showed that people had gone against the Congress and the UPA.