Yogi Adityanath was on Thursday unanimously chosen the leader of the BJP legislature party in Uttar Pradesh in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Adityanath will now visit the Raj Bhawan to meet Governor Anandiben Patel and stake claim to form the government. The meeting of the newly elected party MLAs was held at Lok Bhawan here.
The swearing-in ceremony will be held on Friday in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and top BJP leaders.
The BJP top brass on Thursday gave final touches to the government formation exercise in Uttar Pradesh as the party takes into account a variety of factors, ranging from caste, age, regional balance and education among others, to decide on the members of the new Cabinet.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who is also the party's observer for the legislative party meeting, BJP president J P Nadda and Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who was his party's in-charge for the state polls, met on Thursday for deliberations.
While the BJP and its allies have won over two-thirds majority in the 403-member assembly, the ruling party is likely to keep its further political expansion and future challenges in mind during the formation of the new government.
Baby Rani Maurya, a member of the influential Jatav community from the Scheduled Castes, is widely tipped to be given an important place in the new government. She had resigned as Uttarakhand governor to fight the assembly polls.
Brijesh Pathak, a minister in the outgoing government, Uttar Pradesh BJP chief Swatantar Dev Singh and A K Sharma, a former bureaucrat considered close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, are also being talked about as probables for key positions, including deputy chief ministers if the party seeks to bring in new faces.
Adityanath had on Wednesday met Nadda to discuss the formation of government in the state. The oath-taking ceremony of the new government will be held on Friday in a mega event at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ikana stadium in Lucknow.
It is expected to be attended by Modi along with several Union cabinet ministers and chief ministers of BJP-ruled states. The BJP with its allies won 273 seats out of 403, becoming the first party in over three decades to form a government for a second consecutive time in the state.
The ceremony on Friday will be attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and CMs of BJP-ruled states.
Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani and 60 other business tycoons have been invited.
Roads leading to Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, the venue for the event, have been decorated with lights.
Cut-outs of PM Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Adityanath have been put up along the road.
Roads leading to Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, the venue for the event, have been decorated with lights.
UP BJP general secretary J P S Rathore told PTI, "Invitations to dignitaries are being sent both by the party and the state government. Chief ministers of all BJP-ruled states have been invited. Invites have also been sent to opposition leaders in the state."
Adityanath has personally sent invitations to over 50 seers, including those from Ayodhya, Mathura and Varanasi. Vishwa Hindu Parishad's state-level functionary Dinesh Shankar said, "Prominent seers, along with senior members of Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra trust, have been invited for the ceremony."
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and his ally RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary said they won't attend the swearing-in ceremony. Akhilesh had attended Adityanath's oath ceremony in 2017 along with his father Mulayam Singh Yadav.
'The other prominent personalities who will turn up for the event are yoga guru Baba Ramdev, The Kashmir Files director Vivek Agnihotri and actor Anupam Kher. BJP party workers from different states have also been invited to the mega event. The venue has the capacity to accommodate 50,000 people. The stage for the VIPs has been prepared in the northern end of the stadium. A small area right before the main stage has been allocated to the media. While four pitches of the cricket stadium have been barricaded, seating arrangements have been made on the entire ground.
The underpasses of Shaheed Path are also being painted. The ceremony is expected to begin from 4 pm onwards. Adityanath had kickstarted his election campaign from the stadium in December when he distributed tablets and mobile phones among students in a grand event. The swearing-in ceremony is expected to be the grandest in terms of numbers since 2007.
In 2017, the oath-taking ceremony was held at Kanshiram Smriti Upvan. The Uttar Pradesh Police has made tight security arrangements. Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar said, "Close to 8000 personnel of the Uttar Pradesh Police, Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) along with specialised units like the Special Task Force (STF) and the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) have been deployed."
"The access to the venue will be strictly regulated with ATS commandos manning all sensitive spots. Each visitor will be screened before being allowed to enter the venue. Door frame metal detectors and hand held metal detectors are being set up at every entry point," he said. Police have also installed CCTV cameras in and around the venue. The feed from the CCTV cameras will be monitored live at the control room under the supervision of senior officials. Drones will also be kept on standby, said Kumar.
According to officials, a three-layer security will be put in place at the venue. The Lucknow police commissionerate has also issued a detailed traffic diversion plan for the entire day. It has also launched a helpline for people stuck in the traffic.
