Lucknow, Nov 28 (IANS): The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh will set up a state university named after Raja Mahendra Pratap Singh in Aligarh.

Raja Mahendra Pratap Singh had donated land for the construction of Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) and BJP leaders had earlier raised a demand that the AMU be renamed after the Jat king.

However, to avoid any political controversy on the issue, the Yogi government has decided to build a new university in his name.

The Yogi government had passed a resolution to this effect in a Cabinet meeting and an ordinance was subsequently issued on Tuesday.

Deputy Chief Minister Dinesh Sharma, who also holds the higher education portfolio, said, "Now that the ordinance has been tabled, work on the university will begin soon."

The Yogi Adityanath government's move to set up the university named after Raja Mahendra Pratap Singh is being seen as a move by the BJP to win over Jats who are slowly drifting away from the party.

This was evident in the UP Lok Sabha election where the BSP scored over BJP in western UP and then in the recent Haryana election where the BJP failed to secure a majority though it formed the government with the support of the fledgling JJP.