Big jolt to BJP ahead of UP polls, UP minister Swami Prasad Maurya resigns from Yogi cabinet; joins Samajwadi Party

Lucknow: In a major setback to the ruling BJP in Uttar Pradesh, state cabinet minister Swami Prasad Maurya resigned from the Yogi Adityanath cabinet here on Tuesday.

In his letter to Governor Anandiben Patel, the Labour, Employment and Coordination Minister said despite adverse circumstances and ideology, he has discharged the responsibility with great dedication.

"But due to the continued and complete lack of consideration towards the Dalits, backward, farmers, unemployed youth and small and medium traders..., I feel need to resign from the state cabinet," he said.

For the past couple of months, rumours have been rife that Maurya might join the Samajwadi Party.

SP chief Akhilesh Yadav even tweeted a photo with Maurya just minutes after his resignation.

"Warm welcome and greetings to the popular leader Shri Swami Prasad Maurya ji who fought for social justice and equality and all the other leaders, workers and supporters who came with him in SP! There will be revolution of social justice~ There will be change in 2022," he said along with the Hindi hashtag that said there will be bicycle in 2022. The Samajwadi Party poll sign is bicycle.

Other rumours doing rounds have been that Maurya has demanded ticket for his son in the Assembly polls from the BJP.

Maurya is the Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Padrauna seat in Kushinagar district. His daughter Sanghamitra Maurya is BJP Lok Sabha member from Badaun. His son too, contested the 2017 polls on a BJP ticket from Dalmau in Rae Bareli, but lost to SP candidate Manoj Kumar Pandey.

Maurya joined the BJP before 2017 assembly polls after quitting Bahujan Samaj Party, where he was the leader of the party in the assembly. (Inputs from UNI)