Yogi Adityanath led his party to a thumping victory in the recently concluded assembly elections.
Yogi Adityanath -- formally chosen the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh by BJP legislators on Thursday -- reminded his audience that this was the first time a Chief Minister is getting a second straight term in the state. With this election, the BJP also showed that elections can be "fought on nationalism and good governance," he added.
The BJP won a consecutive term in the recently concluded elections -- a record of sorts in nearly 40 years. Pointing to his individual record, Yogi Adityanath said, "The party believed in me in 2017. I was just a normal MP and I had no administrative experience and yet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the home minister were like guardians to me and told me how to being good governance to UP".
"One can know some things as a MP but how to govern and administer is something different," said the Chief Minister, who is also a five-time MP from Gorakhpur.
"One can be an MP in a limited space but to govern a state like UP is a different ballgame and because of the guidance I got we have managed to being good governance to UP," added the Chief Minister elect, who has been hugely criticized by the opposition in the run-up to the election over his handling of the second wave of Covid and other governance issues.
"The opposition and people who want to destabilise the country were all trying to influence the outcome of this election but with the PM leading the way, we have shown this election could be fought on nationalism and good governance," he added.
Speaking on the occasion, Union Minister Amit Shah -- the party's Central observer for Uttar Pradesh -- said it was a "matter of pride that history is being scripted today".
"No party has got two majorities consecutively in 35 years but we have done it twice with two-thirds majority," added the chief strategist of the BJP, who had warned months ago on how crucial this election will be for the 2024 general election.
The BJP retained power in Uttar Pradesh by winning 255 out of 403 constituencies, securing a 41.29 per cent vote share.
The oath ceremony of the Chief Minister and his cabinet will be held on Friday, which will be attended by PM Modi. Preparations are being made for thousands of guests, including senior party leaders, Union ministers and Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states.
Yogi Adityanath, late on Thursday, also dialled former chief ministers Akhilesh Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav and Mayawati to invite them for the oath ceremony.
Several Bollywood stars, including Akshay Kumar, Kangana Ranaut and Boney Kapoor, have also received invitations.
The team of the recently released runaway hit Hindi movie "The Kashmir Files" has also been invited. Actor Anupam Kher and director Vivek Agnihotri are expected to attend.
The ceremony will be held at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow at 4 pm.