Jailbirds get free hand to contest UP elections

LUCKNOW: Bars no bar seems to be the credo of several candidates who are contesting the UP Assembly election from various jails. The list of such illustrious characters includes mafia dons of international infamy Om Prakash Srivastava alias ‘Babloo’ and Abu Salem.

Babloo, languishing in the Bareilly jail for about 12 years now for the 1993 murder of customs officer LD Arora, has declared his plans to contest from the state capital itself. He told DNA that he would soon be filing his nomination for the Lucknow Central seat. “I want to dedicate myself to the service of the people. I feel I would do better than politicians in eliminating crime from the society as I know all the ways and means,” he said.

Babloo is not alone in throwing his hat in UP’s electoral ring. Abu Salem, at present cooling his heels in Mumbai’s Arthur Road jail, is a close second. Apna Dal, a political outfit led by Kurmi kinsmen, has already declared that Salem would be its candidate from Mubarakpur in his home district Azamgarh. The only catch is that Abu Salem’s name is yet to figure on the voter list in that constituency. 

Others with criminal cases against them contesting polls include MLAs Amarmani Tripathi, Mukhtar Ansari, Vijay Singh, Akhilesh Singh, Abhay Singh and cabinet minister Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya.

UP’s Chief Electoral Officer AK Vishnoi said the DMs have been made directly responsible for monitoring the activities of these candidates inside jails. “Meetings of political workers inside the jails will not be allowed,” he said.