Uttar Pradesh: Slipping ground With panchayat elections due in April and state polls just a year away, it’s in Uttar Pradesh that the BJP is feeling maximum heat, especially since Rakesh Tikait has taken over the leadership of the farmer agitation after the Republic Day violence. The Tikait brothers — Naresh and Rakesh — from Sisauli village of Muzaffarnagar head the Baliyan Khap that is ranked as one of the biggest among the Jat community. The Jat votes decide the fate of a party in about 20 Assembly and 17 Lok Sabha seats. Their support helped the BJP gain big in 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls and the 2017 state elections.