UP Polls: Here's all about Uma Shankar Singh, lone winner of Mayawati-led BSP

With 87,887 votes in his kitty, Uma Shankar Singh defeated SP ally Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party's Mahendra, and BJP's Babban from Rasara constituency.

Once a ruling party of India's most populous state, Mayawati-led Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) received red flags from all corners of Uttar Pradesh on Thursday after the assembly election results were declared. The party managed to win only one seat of the 403 assembly constituencies of the northern state. The lone candidate who emerged victorious on a BSP ticket is Uma Shankar Singh from the Rasara constituency.

Bahujan Samaj Party MLA Uma Shankar Singh won 2022 UP assembly polls from the Rasara constituency.(Agency File Photo)

With 87,887 votes in his kitty, Singh went past his close rival Mahendra of the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party - an ally of the Samajwadi Party (SP) in this year's elections, and Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) Babban. While Mahendra bagged 81,304 votes, Babban won 24,235.

Earlier in the day, Mayawati said the Uttar Pradesh assembly election results were a “lesson” and that the BSP should “continue putting in efforts”.

“The poll results are opposed to BSP's expectations. We should not be discouraged by it. Instead we should learn from it, introspect and carry forward our party movement, and come back to power,” the former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh told reporters.

However, if looked at past winning trends in the Rasara seat, Singh has remained the undefeated contender.

Here are a few things to know about the lone BSP winner:

1. Singh is a contractor by profession and a popular name in Ballia district where Rasara assembly constituency falls.
2. This is the third time that he has won the Rasara seat, having won in 2017 and 2012 assembly polls as well.
3. According to a report by Hindustan Times' sister website Live Hindustan, Singh is known in Rasara for helping the poor and providing freebies to people. This includes helping the poor in their daughters' wedding to the education of their child. He even offers free WiFi to the people in Rasara.