Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya has spoken openly about preparations for the 2027 Assembly elections, organisational changes and speculation over several sitting MLAs losing their tickets.
On Shivpal Yadav’s claim that Azam Khan would be made Home Minister if the Samajwadi Party returned to power, Maurya said Akhilesh Yadav would neither become the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister nor Rahul Gandhi the Prime Minister.
He also questioned the SP’s PDA strategy, saying Akhilesh had led a majority government between 2012 and 2017 but had done little for backward classes and Dalits. Read Keshav Prasad Maurya’s full interview
Keshav Maurya said – In 2027, BJP’s old victory records will be broken.
Q: The BJP’s new national team has been announced. How do you view it?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: Five states will go to the polls in 2027, followed by the Lok Sabha elections in 2029. This team will help the BJP win these elections by a very large margin. National president Nitin Nabin has given Uttar Pradesh adequate representation. The team is very strong and capable. Its members have helped the party win elections in other states, and this team will create a new record in Uttar Pradesh.
Q: Six months are left for the elections. What is the BJP’s preparation?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: If the Election Commission announces that the elections will be held in two, four or six months, we will fight strongly. The BJP is always ready for elections. We have already started preparing for the 2027 polls. The conference of booth presidents has been held and teams have been formed right up to the panna pramukh level.
Q: Has the BJP’s internal survey recommended dropping the tickets of several MLAs?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: Look, surveys are conducted continuously. Our original survey will not be made public. It shows that we are going to repeat our 2017 performance. In every election, tickets of many sitting MLAs are cut among the 403 seats, and new people are given opportunities.
But who will lose their ticket and who will get an opportunity? That is not decided by Keshav Prasad Maurya or the Uttar Pradesh BJP.
Q: Shivpal Yadav said in Rampur that Azam Khan would be made Home Minister under an SP government. What do you say?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: First, the SP and Congress should understand that they are not going to return to power until 2047. Akhilesh Yadav is not going to become the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. Rahul Gandhi is not going to become the Prime Minister of the country. The SP is not going to form the government in Uttar Pradesh again. There is no substance in Shivpal’s claim.
Q: The SP is making Gen Z and the alleged theft of Ram temple offerings major issues. Could this hurt the BJP?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: The SP and Congress are anti-Gen Z parties. Young people have always supported the BJP. They know that opportunities are being created for them in the government and private sectors because of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Our children are competing with young people from major countries around the world. The government has made a provision of ₹1 lakh crore. Our Gen Z is working hard to achieve the Prime Minister’s goal of a developed India.
Q: The SP is preparing for the election around the PDA factor. How much of a challenge do you see?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: The SP’s PDA is fake. Its PDA has been exposed. Every time they talk about PDA, they change its definition.
I ask Akhilesh Yadav: from 2012 to 2017, the SP had a majority government in Uttar Pradesh. You yourself were the Chief Minister. When you were in power, what did you do for backward classes and Dalits? You only deprived them of their rights and ruined the state. You promoted criminals.
Their PDA means “Parivar Development Agency”.
Q: The SP and Congress are going to contest the Assembly elections together. How is the BJP preparing?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: The SP and Congress contested the 2017 elections together. The alliance suffered a major defeat then, and its condition will be even worse in the 2027 elections.
Q: Some MLAs have started saying, ‘Hare ka sahara, Keshav bhai hamara’ (Keshav is the support of the defeated). How do you deal with this?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: Under the leadership of the Chief Minister, all our MLAs are like one family. Whenever someone wins an election, they become a strong pillar. These pillars work together to take the party forward.
Q: The Lucknow-Kanpur Expressway has reportedly started developing problems soon after opening. Questions are being raised about it. What do you say?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: This is a national project. The expressway was very important, and people in Lucknow and Kanpur are happy that it has been built. Action has also been taken by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari against those responsible for shortcomings.
If a road is supposed to last 25 years but gets damaged within five years or even one year, action will be taken against whoever is responsible.
Q: What will be the BJP’s biggest election issue in 2027?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: The election issue will be “Sabka saath, sabka vikas” (development for all, with everyone’s support). The focus will be on the uplift of the poor and farmers, women’s empowerment and development.
There has been development on a large scale, which is why the Opposition has no issues. They are desperately looking for issues. Those who did not even consider Lord Ram a deity are now worried about what offerings have been made to him.
Q: A photograph of you with Brajesh Pathak went viral with the caption, ‘Kadam-kadam milaye ja’ (keep walking together). What does it mean?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: Brajesh Pathak and I already walk together. Along with us, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, state president Pankaj Chaudhary, organisational general secretary Dharampal, all former state presidents and all the major BJP leaders in the state are also working together.
We will walk together in the 2027 elections as well.
Q: The BJP broke its own victory record in 2017, when you were the state president. Can the record be broken again in 2027?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: Definitely. In 2027, we will win by an even bigger margin than in 2017. This record will be broken.
Q: It is being said that the panchayat elections may be held after the Assembly elections. Is it right to delay them?
Keshav Prasad Maurya: Let me make it clear that our government has made no attempt in this direction. The delay is because of the Backward Classes Commission, which determines which seats should be reserved for which category.
As far as the elections are concerned, all the Opposition parties together cannot even reach half of our strength.
Opposition parties sometimes take the support of caste, sometimes farmers and sometimes students. But the people of the country can see their actions. Who are the people hiding behind farmers and resorting to violence? People are waiting for the right time to puncture the cycle, twist the hand and make the BJP’s lotus bloom.
