Kunda MLA Kunwar Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiyya was today re-inducted in the Mulayam Singh Yadav cabinet. The minister, who is on bail and is facing trial in a POTA case imposed upon him by former chief minister Mayawati, returned to the Sachivalaya after two months.The minister has not only been handed back the Food and Civil Supplies portfolio, he has also been allotted the same ministerial chamber in Sachivalaya which was vacated by him in November.The Opposition BJP slammed Mulayam for his decision to include the controversial MLA in the council of ministers. BJP state unite chief Kesari Nath Tripathi said whether Raja Bhaiyya is guilty or not guilty for the offence is for the court to decide, but the CM has shown haste in re-inducting him. “The Chief Minister should have been more discreet and waited for the court verdict as Raja Bhaiyya has to report to the police often during the trial period. Now, it will look odd for a cabinet minister to report to a police station in Madhya Pradesh,’’ he said.However, the minister played down the controversy. Talking to reporters after the oath-taking ceremony, Raja Bhaiyya denied that the trial proceedings would be affected following his re-induction. “I was on bail when I was a minister. Since the bail had been cancelled I went to jail,’’ he said.Raja Bhaiyya resigned on November 10, 2005 following the Supreme Court’s ruling that the trial in the case should be held in another state. He was bailed out by a designated POTA court in Jabalpur on December 19, 2005.Amar defence: Look at Union CabinetLUCKNOW: The Samajwadi Party on Saturday defended the re-induction of controversial Independent MLA and POTA accused Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiyya in the state cabinet saying that there were several ministers at the Centre with similar antecedents.“We are only following on the footsteps of honourable Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who had ministers like Laloo Prasad Yadav, Shibu Soren and Taslimuddin,’’ SP general secretary Amar Singh said. — PTI
