Why is Gorakhpur seat crucial in Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls; more

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is all set to contest the state Assembly election from Gorakhpur seat. Adityanath, who has won five terms to the Lok Sabha from Gorakhpur, is going to fight the Assembly election from the seat for the first time. He will file his nomination from Gorakhpur on Friday.

Gorakhpur has been a stronghold of the BJP for 33 years. BJP's Shiv Pratap Shukla won the state election from Gorakhpur for four terms between 1989-96. However, in 2002, Shiv Pratap Shukla's fortunes dwindled after Yogi Adityanath, who was then a two-time MP from Gorakhpur, decided to back Hindu Mahasabha's candidate Radha Mohan Das Agarwal. Yogi Adityanath himself held many public rallies to garner support for Agarwal in Gorakhpur. The result was astonishing as four-time MLA Shiv Pratap Shukla could not even secure second position in the election and could manage only 14,509 votes.

Watch this episode of First UP for more.