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After Bihar polls, BJP’s focus back on Uttar Pradesh in run-up to 2027 assembly elections
Senior party leaders in Lucknow indicate that the long-delayed organisational restructuring in the state, coupled with a long-speculated expansion of the Yogi Adityanath government’s council of ministers, is expected to accelerate in the coming days.
Following the conclusion of the Bihar elections, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) central leadership is expected to shift its focus back to Uttar Pradesh, the most crucial battleground ahead of the 2027 assembly elections.
Senior party leaders in Lucknow indicate that the long-delayed organisational restructuring in the state, coupled with a long-speculated expansion of the Yogi Adityanath government’s council of ministers, is expected to accelerate in the coming days.
“The end of the electoral exercise in Bihar has freed key decision-makers who were previously occupied with campaign management, ticket negotiations and government formation there. And with this, we expect political activities to pick up pace in UP,” a senior BJP leader in the government said.
The BJP considers Uttar Pradesh central to its national political arithmetic, making the state polls a high-stakes contest for both the organisation and the government.
Party insiders acknowledge that the organisational overhaul in UP is overdue with the term of the current state president Bhupendra Chaudhary having ended a year ago. The central leadership is expected to announce the schedule for electing a new state president at any moment, even as the timeline for the election of the new national BJP president is simultaneously under discussion.
Both posts are vacant or due for renewal, and the sequence of these appointments, it is said, may influence each other. If the party first finalises the national president, his caste, region, and political background may significantly shape the choice for the UP chief to maintain caste equilibrium and regional balance in the election year.
“Several names are being examined, but the final pick will depend on multiple factors. Uttar Pradesh requires a leader who can manage caste coalitions, energise the cadre, and also align fully with the central leadership’s strategy. If the national president is announced first, the UP chief will naturally be chosen keeping in caste, region etc associated with the national president,” said the leader.
The Adityanath government may also consider a cabinet expansion to fill several vacant ministerial positions ahead of the 2027 battle.
The reshuffle, party insiders say, will reflect both political accommodation and strategic rebalancing. Leaders who may be spared from the reorganised party structure could be inducted into the government, while some ministers may be moved back to the organisation to strengthen the party.
“Vacant cabinet berths are usually filled in the election year to send a political message. With Bihar out of the way, decisions that were held up will now move fast. We expect an expansion soon after the organisational restructuring,” a senior leader in the UP BJP organisation said.
BJP state president Bhupendra Chaudhary said while the pending organisational restructuring was certainly expected to be complete now when the Bihar polls were over, the possibility of a Cabinet expansion too could not be ruled out though it was the CM’s prerogative. “However, no such discussion has been held with us yet,” he added.
