Highest in recent years, UP House sees six MLAs disqualified: 3 each from NDA, SP

Following Abbas’s disqualification, the 403-member UP House has seen six disqualifications since its constitution after February-March 2022 Assembly elections – the highest in recent years despite nearly two years of its term still remaining.

Among the other legislators disqualified since 2022 are three SP and two BJP MLAs.

During the full five years of the previous UP Assembly, from 2017 to 2022, a total of four MLAs were disqualified: three from the BJP and one from the SP.

MPs and MLAs are disqualified under Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which mandates disqualification of convicts for six years in certain cases, including convictions for any offence that has a prison sentence of two or more years.

While the principal Opposition SP has called the disqualification of its MLAs “vendetta politics”, the BJP has pointed out that the disqualifications happened in the wake of court trials and convictions.

Speaking to The Indian Express, SP spokesperson and Lok Sabha MP Rajeev Rai said, “This is nothing but vindictive politics against our leaders due to the arrogance of power of the BJP government. This is a blatant misuse of power.”

Hitting back, BJP spokesperson Rakesh Tripathi said the disqualifications have happened after “due process”. “The disqualifications have happened under the Representation of the People Act after convictions by courts. Does the SP not trust our democracy and judiciary that they are raising such questions?” Tripathi asked.

Here is a look at the disqualifications of six MLAs in the state since 2022.

Azam Khan (SP), Rampur Sadar

The former SP minister has faced a slew of cases since the BJP came to power in 2017. A total of 87 cases have been registered against Khan in Rampur on various charges, including land-grabbing, cheating and criminal trespass. In some cases, his wife Tanzeen Fatima and son Abdullah Azam Khan are the co-accused.

In October 2022, Khan lost his Assembly membership after his conviction in a 2019 hate speech case. The case was lodged based on a complaint by election official Anil Kumar Chauhan, who alleged Khan had “used foul language for people in constitutional posts, threatened them, and tried to flare a riot” while giving a speech in the Milak Assembly constituency.

The FIR against Khan was lodged in April 2019 under IPC sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups) and 505(1) (publishing or circulating any statement, rumour or report), as well as Section 125 (promoting enmity between classes in connection with elections) of the Representation of the People Act.

The speech in question was made during the campaign for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections when the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and SP had contested in an alliance.

Bypoll: The bypoll in Khan’s seat was held in December 2022, and was won by the BJP’s Akash Saxena, his long-time rival. Saxena defeated Khan’s confidant and SP candidate Asim Raja by more than 33,000 votes.

Vikram Saini (BJP), Khatauli

In November 2022, Saini was disqualified a month after being sentenced to two years of imprisonment in a case related to the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots. Saini was disqualified after Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) chief Jayant Chaudhary (then allied with the SP) wrote a letter to UP Assembly Speaker Satish Mahana asking why the seat of convicted MLA had not yet been declared vacant when action was immediately taken in the case of SP MLA Azam Khan.

A total of 11 people, including Saini, were convicted under charges relating to rioting, rioting armed with deadly weapons, endangering life or personal safety of others, assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of duty, intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace, and criminal intimidation.

Bypoll: In the December 2022 bypoll, RLD candidate Madan Bhaiyya, backed by the SP, defeated Saini’s wife and BJP candidate Rajkumari Saini by over 22,143 votes.

Abdullah Azam Khan (SP), Suar

In February 2023, Abdullah, son of Azam Khan, was disqualified from the Assembly after being sentenced to two years’ imprisonment in a 15-year-old case in which Abdullah and his father were booked for blocking traffic after their vehicle was stopped by the police for checking in Moradabad. The incident for which the case was registered against the two leaders occurred a day after the terror attack on the CRPF camp in neighbouring Rampur district in January 2008, which claimed the lives of seven jawans and a rickshaw-puller.

The court had convicted the two under IPC sections 341 (wrongful restraint) and 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), and under the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act.

This was Abdullah’s second disqualification from the Assembly. He was earlier disqualified in 2020 after the Allahabad High Court had set aside his election.

Bypoll: In the May 2023 bypoll, the seat was won by BJP ally Apna Dal (Soneylal) candidate Shafeek Ahmed Ansari by 8,724 votes against the SP’s Anuradha Chauhan.

Ramdular Gond (BJP), Duddhi

In December 2023, BJP MLA Ramdular Gond was disqualified after he was sentenced to 25 years imprisonment by a Sonbhadra district court in a 2014 rape case involving a 15-year-old girl. He was found guilty under IPC sections for rape, causing disappearance of evidence, and giving false information, and under provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The victim’s family alleged that over nine years, they faced a lot of pressure and intimidation from the MLA and his associates for withdrawing the case.

Bypoll: In June 2024, the seat went to the bypoll, which was won by the SP’s Vijay Kumar Singh by 3,208 votes against his rival BJP’s Saravan Kumar.

Irfan Solanki (SP), Sishamau

In June 2024, Solanki, his younger brother Rizwan, and three others were sentenced to seven years imprisonment for allegedly harassing a woman and setting her house on fire in an attempt to grab her land in the Jajmau area of Kanpur in 2022.

This was the first conviction of Solanki, a four-time MLA who has been booked in eight cases since 2022, including charges under the UP Gangsters Act and for forgery. Solanki was subsequently disqualified from the Assembly.

Bypoll: In the bypoll held in November 2024, SP candidate Naseem Solanki, Irfan Solanki’s wife, won from the Sisamau seat, defeating the BJP’s Suresh Awasthi by 8,564 votes.

Abbas Ansari (SBSP), Mau Sadar

In June, 2025, Abbas Ansari was disqualified after he was sentenced to two years in jail in a case related to a controversial speech in which he allegedly threatened government officials.

Abbas, who was elected on the SBSP ticket from Mau Sadar, made the remarks at a public meeting during the 2022 Assembly elections.

The case against Abbas was registered by a police official, claiming that in March 2022, he along with some constables had witnessed Abbas and his brother Umar Ansari addressing a crowd of 150 people from a stage and threatening to “teach a lesson” to the administration officials of Mau after the election, which violated the Model Code of Conduct.

Bypoll: The Election Commission (EC) has yet to announce the schedule for this bypoll.