Uttar Pradesh Politics


The sole credit of presenting the state of Uttar Pradesh with a whole new perspective regarding social as well as economic welfare goes to Uttar Pradesh politics. The state's politics has encountered a major overwhelming upheaval in the last few decades.

The politics in Uttar Pradesh has not only revolutionized the various aspects of life in the state but also procured eminent names to the politics of India as well. As a matter of fact, eight Prime Ministers so far have descended from the territorial dominion of Uttar Pradesh. Arranged in chronological order the list reads as:-
  • Jawahar Lal Nehru
  • Lal Bahadur Shrastri
  • Indira Gandhi
  • Rajiv Gandhi
  • Choudhury Charan Singh
  • Vishwanath Pratap Singh
  • Chandra Shekhar
  • Atal Bihari Vajpayee

The government of Uttar Pradesh is one of the finest examples of a bicameral legislature in India. It is a democratically elected body which is headed by the Governor of the state. The Governor of Uttar Pradesh is elected for a period of five years. He is the ceremonial head of the state and appoints the chief minister and the council of ministers.

Although the Governor is the head of the state but the day to day functioning of Uttar Pradesh politics is managed by the Chief Minister and the council of ministers. The council of ministers comprises ministers of state, cabinet ministers and deputy ministers. The council of ministers is assisted by the Governor's secretary who is the head of the Secretariat.

The two most important parts of the Uttar Pradesh government and politics are the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council. The Legislative Assembly is known as Vidhan Sabha which is the lower house and the Legislative Council or Vidhan Parishad is the upper house.

The Vidhan Sabha or the lower house consists of members directly elected by the people of the state. The Legislative Assembly of Uttar Pradesh currently consists of 404 seats. Elections to the legislative Assembly are held once in every five years similar to the election of the Government.

Parties like Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) mainly dominate Uttar Pradesh politics. Uttar Pradesh consists of 75 administrative districts and each district is taken care by a District Magistrate. District Magistrates are the highest point of authority in every district of Uttar Pradesh.

Board & Commissions

All total, there are five Boards and Commissions in Uttar Pradesh. Out of these, there are three Boards and two Commissions. The Uttar Pradesh Boards and Commissions are described below:
  • Uttar Pradesh Housing and Development Board: This board was set up in April 1966 and started working towards offering housing solutions. But, with time it has entered into planning, designing, construction and development of development projects throughout the state. This board has proved its capabilities by winning national level housing competitions arranged by HUDCO in the year 1976 and 1979.

  • Uttar Pradesh Khadi and Village Industries Board (UPKVIB): It is the board whose main mission is to industrialize the rural areas of Uttar Pradesh and generate self employment in the state.

  • Uttar Pradesh State Agricultural Marketing Board: This board was set up in the year 1973 to coordinate, curb and direct various activities and welfare plans of agricultural markets. The board has helped the farmers in getting the fair price for their crops by implementing various acts and laws in the most efficient way.

  • Uttar Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission: This commission was set up in the year 1999 after the Uttar Pradesh government had enacted the Uttar Pradesh Electricity Reform Act 1999. The commission aims at providing electricity at the most effective price and quality so as to protect the consumer interests and support the economic development of Uttar Pradesh.

  • Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission: This commission was set up on 1 April 1937. The main aim of this commission is to select suitable candidates for civil services in Uttar Pradesh.

Political Parties

  • National Parties

    National Parties are those political parties which have been recognized in more than four states. Political parties are recognized as national parties by the Election Commission of India who monitors the elections in different states. There are many national parties in Uttar Pradesh which have played an important role in shaping up Uttar Pradesh as it is today.

    Following is a small brief on all the significant national parties in Uttar Pradesh:

    • Bahujan Samaj Party : BSP as it is widely known as, was founded by late Kanshi Ram in 1984 to represent the Dalits. Currently, Kumari Mayawati is the President of the party.

    • are many regional parties in Uttar Pradesh. Many of these regional parties have established a strong hold in the politics of the state. Such regional parties have been keeping a watchful eye on the state government. Though they have not been recognized in four or more than that number of states, they have actively been recognized in the respective states from where they fight elections.

      Given below is a brief on such two regional parties in Uttar Pradesh :

      • Samajwadi Party: Popularly known as SP, it is one of the largest regional parties in India. This party was set up in the year 1992 when Janata Dal was broken into several different regional parties. Samajwadi Party is led by Mulayam Singh Yadav. This party has always presented itself as a democratic socialist party.

      • Rashtriya Lok Dal: Also known as RLD, this regional party of Uttar Pradesh is led by Ajit Singh and was an alliance of Samajwadi Party. It gave support to the latter's government in Uttar Pradesh. This regional party of Uttar Pradesh claims to be carrying on the legacy of Charan Singh and the original Lok Dal from which it separated. The party has a very strong hold over the Jats in the western part of Uttar Pradesh.

    WBST161014



    Last Updated on : October 16, 2014