Lucknow: Mau The assembly constituency includes not only the two candidates but also their families, who are locked in a struggle beyond electoral rivalry.
BJP candidate Ashok Singh (57) will be in the fray Abbas Ansari (29), son of jailed mafia-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari.
Abbas is supported by the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP), an ally of the Samajwadi Party, which enjoys considerable support in eastern UP.
Singh says, “Mukhtar Ansari ran away from here due to fear, aapne boys ko aaya kar diya (Mukhtar is scared and has fled the election battle leaving his son to fight).
Mukhtar had contested the 2017 assembly elections as a BSP candidate but this time Mayawati has denied him ticket, fielding Bhim Rajbhari,
lion and Ansari family Old rivals. In August 2009, Ashok’s brother Ajay Pratap Singh Alias Manna was shot in broad daylight at the behest of Mukhtar Ansari. However, he was acquitted due to lack of evidence.
The Singh family moved the Allahabad High Court to challenge the acquittal. The matter is pending in the court.
Ram Singh Maurya and his gunner Satish Kumar were shot dead in March 2010. Mukhtar was again made an accused.
The last 12 years have not been easy for Singh. “We are the only family in the entire region which has stood up against the mafia. I have been threatened and implicated in fake cases. I have been offered money and all kinds of other compromise deals, but I want to see him behind bars for what Mukhtar has done to my brother,” says Ashok.
The Singhs were forced to convert their home in the Sahadatpur area into a kind of fort. The height of the boundary wall was raised, wire mesh was installed and dozens of CCTV cameras were installed.
Sensing sympathy for the family, BJP decided to field Ashok Singh from the seat this time. He said, ‘Now I am confident of winning this seat. Mukhtar’s decision to let his son fight is a clear indication that he no longer gets support,” says Singh.
Although it is common for candidates to congratulate each other before the election, there is no such equation between the two families. “Why should I greet anyone related or close to Mukhtar Ansari. I will not bow down before him at any cost.”
“OP Rajbhar will also fail to garner support from his community for Abbas. Voters know the background of the Ansari family. They will not support him this time,” says Singh.
Mukhtar has been a five-time MLA from Mau and has never lost an election since 1996, when he contested without the support of any party. Voting will be held in Mau on March 7.
BSP candidate Bhim Rajbhar contested in 2012 and got 64,306 votes. BSP had given ticket to Mukhtar in 2017 but this time it has again fielded Rajbhar.
Abbas Ansari did not respond to phone calls and text messages sent to him.
BJP candidate Ashok Singh (57) will be in the fray Abbas Ansari (29), son of jailed mafia-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari.
Abbas is supported by the Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP), an ally of the Samajwadi Party, which enjoys considerable support in eastern UP.
Singh says, “Mukhtar Ansari ran away from here due to fear, aapne boys ko aaya kar diya (Mukhtar is scared and has fled the election battle leaving his son to fight).
Mukhtar had contested the 2017 assembly elections as a BSP candidate but this time Mayawati has denied him ticket, fielding Bhim Rajbhari,
lion and Ansari family Old rivals. In August 2009, Ashok’s brother Ajay Pratap Singh Alias Manna was shot in broad daylight at the behest of Mukhtar Ansari. However, he was acquitted due to lack of evidence.
The Singh family moved the Allahabad High Court to challenge the acquittal. The matter is pending in the court.
Ram Singh Maurya and his gunner Satish Kumar were shot dead in March 2010. Mukhtar was again made an accused.
The last 12 years have not been easy for Singh. “We are the only family in the entire region which has stood up against the mafia. I have been threatened and implicated in fake cases. I have been offered money and all kinds of other compromise deals, but I want to see him behind bars for what Mukhtar has done to my brother,” says Ashok.
The Singhs were forced to convert their home in the Sahadatpur area into a kind of fort. The height of the boundary wall was raised, wire mesh was installed and dozens of CCTV cameras were installed.
Sensing sympathy for the family, BJP decided to field Ashok Singh from the seat this time. He said, ‘Now I am confident of winning this seat. Mukhtar’s decision to let his son fight is a clear indication that he no longer gets support,” says Singh.
Although it is common for candidates to congratulate each other before the election, there is no such equation between the two families. “Why should I greet anyone related or close to Mukhtar Ansari. I will not bow down before him at any cost.”
“OP Rajbhar will also fail to garner support from his community for Abbas. Voters know the background of the Ansari family. They will not support him this time,” says Singh.
Mukhtar has been a five-time MLA from Mau and has never lost an election since 1996, when he contested without the support of any party. Voting will be held in Mau on March 7.
BSP candidate Bhim Rajbhar contested in 2012 and got 64,306 votes. BSP had given ticket to Mukhtar in 2017 but this time it has again fielded Rajbhar.
Abbas Ansari did not respond to phone calls and text messages sent to him.
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