Adityanath’s charisma at stake in civic polls

Lucknow, Nov 21: The elections to local bodies in 24 districts in the state are being viewed as a test for Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, with all eyes on Ayodhya where the opposition Samajwadi Party has fielded a transgender for the mayoral contest.

All poll arrangements are in place for the first phase. The districts where elections are going to held are Shamli, Meerut, Hapur, Bijnore, Badaun, Hathras, Kasganj, Agra, Kanpur, Jalaun, Hamirpur, Chitrakoot, Kaushambi, Pratapgarh, Unnao, Hardoi, Amethi, Faizabad, Gonda, Basti, Gorakhpur, Azamgarh, Ghazipur and naxal-affected Sonebhadra. The most interesting contest would be in Ayodhya where transgender Gulshan Bindu has been fielded by Samajwadi Party. This is for the first time that people of Ayodhya would vote to elect a mayor and councillors. UNI