Raja Bhaiya held for threatening candidate

“An FIR has been lodged naming 13 people. Among them,11 have been arrested so far,” said SP (Pratapgarh) O P Sagar. The accused have been booked under IPC Sections 307 (attempt to murder),364 (kidnapping),395 (dacoity),504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) and 506 (punishment for criminal intimidation),besides Criminal Law Amendment Act.

Later,following a complaint by Vinod Saroj against Shukla and 20 others,the police filed an FIR under SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and IPC Sections 146/147 for rioting,said Circle Officer (Kunda) Amarnath Singh.

According to sources in the BSP,on Saturday night,Shukla and his supporters were on way to Kunda when Raja Bhaiya and his associates tried to stop their vehicle. Manoj Tewari,a member of Pratapgarh Zila Panchayat and BSP leader,said Shukla tried to get away,but Raja Bhaiya and his supporters opened fire and began to chase them.

Both groups reached the Kunda police station. “The SP leaders beat up Shukla and his supporters on the police station premises and then asked the police to lodge an FIR against the victims,” Tewari said. They wanted Shukla to withdraw his nomination from the polls,he added.

Though Tewari alleged that Shukla was beaten up on the Kunda police station premises,the Pratapgarh SP maintained that the incident had taken place outside the police station.

Sources in the SP,however,had a different story to narrate. According to them,Raja Bhaiya had hosted a dinner for BDC members,who will vote to elect the president. “After the dinner,when MLA Vinod Saroj was going home along with some others,BSP men — who were waiting outside — tried to identify the BDC members who had attended the dinner. They clashed with Saroj and later both sides reached the police station,” said an MLC close to Raja Bhaiya.

Speaking on the arrests,SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav alleged that the BSP government was trying to create fear among SP workers to win local body elections.

“The chief minister thinks that by creating fear among SP workers,she can win elections. But this cannot happen. I will raise this issue in Parliament and the DM and SP — who made the arrests — will have to pay for their act,” Yadav said in a statement in Etawah.

Addressing the media in Lucknow,Leader of Opposition in the Assembly,Shivpal Singh Yadav,said the arrests are another example of the state government misusing the administrative machinery.

Party workers will hold dharnas at all district headquarters on Monday to protest against the arrests.

Elections for the post of BDC presidents will be held across the state on December 22. (with PTI inputs)