BJP wins Milkipur bypoll in 'prestige battle' against Samajwadi Party

Milkipur bypoll election result: BJP's Chandrabhan Paswan triumphed over Samajwadi Party's Ajit Prasad by a margin of 61,710 votes

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) emerged victorious in the fiercely contested Milkipur Assembly by-election, defeating the Samajwadi Party (SP). BJP’s Chandrabhan Paswan triumphed over SP’s Ajit Prasad by a margin of 61,710 votes after 31 rounds of counting.

 

The Milkipur seat, a Scheduled Castes-reserved constituency in the Ayodhya district, witnessed a close electoral battle. The by-election was necessitated after SP's Awadhesh Prasad won the Faizabad (Ayodhya) parliamentary seat in 2024 Lok Sabha polls. His son, Ajit Prasad, was then nominated by the SP against BJP's Chandrabhan Paswan—both from the influential Pasi community.

 

Reacting to the BJP’s victory, Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya described it as a "trailer" ahead of the 2027 UP Assembly elections. "Abhi jhaaki hai, poori picture abhi baaki hai," he said, asserting that the Samajwadi Party would be reduced to insignificance in the next polls.

 

Why was Milkipur a prestige battle for BJP?

 

The by-election gained prominence following the BJP’s unexpected defeat in the Faizabad Lok Sabha seat last year, despite the grand inauguration of the Ram temple in Ayodhya. The BJP sought to reclaim ground in the region, turning the Milkipur bypoll into a crucial electoral battle.

 

The election date was initially delayed due to a legal challenge by BJP’s Baba Gorakhnath, who had contested the 2022 elections from the seat. He had questioned the authenticity of Awadhesh Prasad’s nomination papers but later withdrew his petition, paving the way for the Election Commission to announce February 5 as the polling date.