Raja Bhaiya, Cong rivals join issue over delimitation

Varanasi, Sep 6 (UNI) In a show of unprecedented unity, rivals in state politics, UP minister and independent MLA from Kunda (Pratapgarh) Raghuraj Pratap Singh alias Raja Bhaiya and CLP leader Pramod Tiwari and former Congress MP from Pratapgarh Ratna Singh spoke in one voice before Chief Election Commissioner N Gopalswamy in a meeting here to raise objections to the proposal for delimitation of assembly and Lok Sabha.

A two-day meeting of the Delimitation Commission, with the CEC as the chairperson, got under way yesterday to hear suggestions and objections from representatives of various political parties and other organisations at the Cultural Complex here.

Often pitted against each other, Raja Bhaiya supported Ms Ratna Singh when she objected to the proposed merger of two assembly segments -- Kunda and Bihar of Pratapgarh Lok Sabha seat with the Kaushambi Lok Sabha seat and attachments of two assembly seats from Sultanpur parliamentary seat in her constituency.

''It will be unfair geographically, as electorate and candidates alike will have to travel more than 100 km to cover the entire constituency. ''She suggested that the assembly segments sitauted north of Ganga river be left in Pratapgarh,''.

Though he had no objection to shifting his Rampur Khas assembly segment to party president Sonia Gandhi's Lok Sabha constituency of Rae Bareli, Mr Tiwari tried hard to convince the CEC not to disturb his constituency by keeping the Bakulahi river as its natural borderline.

The meeting was scheduled to be held in three sessions and in the inaugural session, representatives from Banda, Chitrakoot, Fatehpur and Kaushambi had to submit their objections and suggestions.

However, the session concluded in 15 minutes as only a few from these districts turned up at the venue.

However, the second session witnessed noisy scenes, in which political stalwarts from Pratapgarh, Allahabad, Bhadohi, Jaunpur and Varanasi districts participated along with a sizeable number of their supporters.

Representing Allahabad, All India Women Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi suggested that Jhansi, City North and City South assembly seats not be separated from Allahabad parliamentary constituency. Other leaders objected to the proposed changes in Phoolpur and Kaushambi constituencies.

Samajwadi Party MP from Jaunpur Paras Nath Yadav, BJP MLAs Surendra Pratap Singh and Somaru Ram Saroj objected to proposal to cut down the assembly segments form ten to nine in the district to constitute the same number of two Lok Sabha seats -- Jaunpur and Machalishahar.

Congress MP from Varanasi Rajesh Mishra and former BJP MLA Jyotsna Srivastava also put in their suggestions to the Commission.

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