UP: Cong fields murder convict in bypoll

Lucknow, Aug 6: Congress in Uttar Pradesh has fielded a murder convict as its candidate for the forthcoming Farrukhabad Assembly bypoll, giving heartburn to many and initiating an infighting.

While party officially claimed that Vijay Singh was fielded as he had won the Farrukhabad seat twice, several senior leaders claimed that better candidates and party's principles were ignored.

Vijay Singh, a Jat leader, had first won the seat as an Independent. Later he won the seat for the second time on a Samajwadi Party ticket in the last assembly polls. Though a lower court had convicted him of murdering BJP leader Brahmadutt Dwivedi, he managed a stay on the order from the High Court.

Soon after the Mayawati government came to power in May this year, Singh left the SP and joined the BSP. The bypoll was necessitated as Singh had to resign his House membership to join BSP. But Chief Minister and BSP president Mayawati decided that a criminal should not be part of the party and he was unceremoniously booted out of BSP.

''After leaving SP and being thrown out of BSP, Singh had no option but to seek a ticket from Congress...unfortunately we obliged him and ignored cleaner candidates,'' claimed a senior functionary.

Singh as could not have joined BJP as he was convicted of killing one of its leaders.

But on the other hand, another group of Congress leaders claimed that party could not find a willing candidate for the bypolls after the drubbing it had received in the just held assembly elections.

''Very few candidates were sure of winning the bypoll as Ms Sonia Gandhi and Mr Rahul Gandhi have blamed poor organisational structure for the party's dismal performance,'' said a senior party functionary.

Interestingly, much is at stake for Congress in Farrukhabad as UPCC chief Salman Khurshid's wife Louis Khurshid had failed to retain the Kayamganj assembly seat from Farrukhabad district.

While Muhammad Rizwan is Congress candidate from Gunnaur assembly seat, vacated by former chief minister and SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, the party is yet to field anyone for the Suar Tanda seat.

The assembly bypolls to the three seats are due on August 31.

Even as Congressmen fight over the selection of candidates, Union minister Kapil Sibal had a word of advice for them: ''There is a need to revitalise the Congress in UP...we have to take in the recent results of the assembly elections,'' he told UNI