'Modi Wave 3.0' or local issues: which way is Uttar Pradesh voting? | The India Story: Road to 2024

With 80 Lok Sabha seats, elections in Uttar Pradesh are fiercely contested, passionately participated in, keenly watched and closely monitored. An estimated 150 million voters in the state as of 2022, caste and religion remain the dominant factors in elections.

In 2014, the BJP won 71 seats in the state, a monumental increase from the 10 seats it won in 2009 Lok Sabha elections. Its number slipped to 62 in 2019 but BJP emerged as the single largest party for the second straight time.

As the state votes in all seven-phases this time, what are the decisive factors on the ground?

Is it Ram Mandir, Hindutava, lack of jobs or will Opposition’s ‘Save Democracy’ appeal resonate with minority voters?

The absence of an SP-BSP alliance has given BJP an edge but who will Muslims and Dalits vote for?

How strong is Narendra Modi’s impact? Can Modi Wave 3.0 sweep UP for the third time?

Editorji’s Vikram Chandra travelled to Lucknow ahead of crucial final phases to get a sense of voter’s mood from Prashant Trivedi, Associate Professor, Giri Institute of Development Studies and Sunita Aron, Author and Consulting Editor, Hindustan Times