Bahoran Lal Maurya Elected Unopposed to UP Legislative Council

BJP's Bahoran Lal Maurya was elected unopposed to a seat in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council after the nomination withdrawal period ended. He filed his nomination on Tuesday, and no opposition candidates came forward. The seat was vacant due to Swami Prasad Maurya's resignation.

BJP's Bahoran Lal Maurya was elected unopposed to a seat in the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council on Friday, an official confirmed.

Special Secretary and Returning Officer of the UP Legislative Assembly, Mohammad Mushahid, made the announcement while issuing a formal notification.

Maurya received his certificate of election after the nomination withdrawal period concluded. He had initially filed his nomination as a Member of Legislative Council (MLC) on Tuesday.

As there were no nominations from opposition parties, Maurya was declared elected unopposed.

The notification for the by-election was issued on June 25, with the last day for nominations set for July 2. Post scrutiny on July 3, July 5 was the final date for withdrawal of nominations. Voting was scheduled for July 12.

This seat fell vacant following the resignation of Samajwadi Party member, Swami Prasad Maurya, on February 20 earlier this year. His term was originally set to end in July 2028.

Swami Prasad Maurya subsequently founded a new political party, the Rashtriya Shoshit Samaj Party, after resigning from both his Council membership and the Samajwadi Party (SP).

Previously, Bahoran Lal Maurya has held MLA positions from Bareilly's Bhojipura seat in 1996 and 2017. However, in the 2022 assembly elections, he lost to Shahzil Islam of the SP by a margin exceeding 9,400 votes.

According to the UP Legislative Council's website, the 100-member House currently comprises 78 BJP members and 10 SP members. Additionally, it includes one member each from Apna Dal-Sonelal, Nishad Party, Jansatta Dal (Democratic), Rashtriya Lok Dal, Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party, and Teachers' Party. There are also four Independent members, with two seats remaining vacant.

(Disclaimer: With inputs from agencies.)