Out of touch but Raja Bhaiyya hits target

In a gun-crazy State, and given his infamous title as the ‘‘Kunda ka goonda’’, it is perhaps befitting that Raghuraj Pra...

In a gun-crazy State, and given his infamous title as the ‘‘Kunda ka goonda’’, it is perhaps befitting that Raghuraj Pratap Singh, better known as Raja Bhaiyya, should win the shooting event held at Kesarram Narang shooting range over the weekend. Or maybe he was inspired by our lone Olympic silver medallist, shooter Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore.

‘‘I don’t want to sound immodest but if I was using my rifle, I would not have missed even the two shots that I did. Ab mein apne muh se apni taarif aur kya karun,’’ he told The Indian Express. For the record, Singh, who is now the Minister for Food and Civil Supplies in the Mulayam Cabinet, was using a friend’s weapon for the first two shots out of the total 20.

‘‘I will now work harder to achieve a full bull’s-eye at the final round of the tournament on September 12,’’ he added. The tournament is held in the memory of his grandfather, Bajrang Bahadur Singh, who was a national-level shooter. ‘‘I could not practice for the last two years,’’ said Singh. He was battling POTA charges from behind bars.

Story continues below this ad

Singh now practices regularly at his palatial house in Kunda as well as at the Lucknow shooting range. According to R K Narang, who’s in charge of the Narang Shooting Range, Raja Bhaiyya is fast emerging as a champion shooter. ‘‘After the gap, his shooting has certainly improved as he practises more often now. He has imported his rifles from Italy for the double-trap event. Even Rathore used rifles of Italian make,’’ said Narang.

‘‘I have received numerous certificates. I am more worried about the young shooters in the state. Shooting is not a game for all. It requires a lot of investment as each cartridge comes for between Rs 40-50. The government should provide concessions,’’ he said, adding, ‘‘there is an urgent need to open shooting ranges in every district of Uttar Pradesh. Then see how many medal-prospects we will produce.’’

‘Grave insult to wounded people’: Cong lashes out at PM Modi amid his first Manipur visit

India11 hr ago

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits Manipur for the first time since ethnic violence hit the state in May 2023, the Congress on Saturday called it a “farce, tokenism, and a grave insult to a wounded people”.

View all shorts

Live Blog