Supporters of Samajwadi Party legislator Amarmani Tripathi have formed a youth brigade named after him, in an attempt to improve his image after his alleged involvement in the murder of poet Madhumita Shukla in Lucknow on November 9, 2002.The youth brigade has its headquarters in Hardoi, but has units in Mathura, Azamagarh and Madhumita’s native district, Lakhimpur. ‘‘Moved by the ideology he has been following and sacrifices he has made so far, we have decided to form a youth brigade in his name. This brigade will have its presence in all districts of the state but initially we have managed to spread our units in four districts,’’ said Manik Agnihotri, president of the brigade.‘‘Our volunteers were dispatched in Mainpuri and Akbarpur by polls (where polling was held today) to help the Samajwadi Party nominees fare better in elections. We hope that the youths will get the true path under patronage of Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav in general and Amarmani Tripathi in particular,’’ said Agnihotri.Meanwhile, the former minister is maintaining a low profile after being released from jail a few months ago. Tripathi, a history-sheeter, has been elected thrice from Laxmipur Assembly segment in Gorakhpur district.‘‘Amarmani is a source of inspiration for youth, especially students. He is always responsive to problems being faced by students. We will leave no stone unturned to refurbish his image,’’ said Agnihotri.Youth brigades in the state tend to comprise young people, mainly men in their 20s, who carry out various programmes and participate in election campaigning, when asked to do so.The state already has a Mulayam Singh youth brigade, a Rajiv Gandhi youth brigade and a Raja Bhaiyya brigade, named after Tripathi’s friend-turned-foe Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiyya.The Raja Bhaiyya youth brigade is a force to reckon with in the history-sheeter’s native Pratapgarh district. Raja Bhaiyya has been elected from the district’s Kunda assembly segment as an Independent candidate since 1993. The youth brigade holds a mass marriage every year, in which nearly 1,100 poor couples are married off. The group takes care of the arrangements and collects household items for the newlyweds.
