BJP senior leader R.K. Singh quits, aligns with Prashant Kishor
New Delhi: In a major setback to the ruling NDA ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections, senior BJP leader and former Union power minister R.K. Singh has resigned from the party and extended support to Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor.
Singh has also demanded that Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary and BJP state president Dilip Jaiswal step down if they fail to address allegations against them. Singh said the charges, raised by Kishor, are damaging the party’s credibility and electoral prospects.
Prashant Kishor has alleged that Chaudhary is not a matriculate and holds a fake graduation certificate from California University. Kishor claimed to possess documentary evidence and has even moved the Patna High Court.
Singh, echoing these concerns, told reporters: “If they have evidence to dispute the allegations, they should come forward. If not, they should step down.”
Chaudhary, considered the BJP’s key OBC face in Bihar, is being projected as a chief ministerial candidate by the central leadership. However, the allegations are seen as a blow to the BJP’s outreach strategy in the state.
The controversy has added a new dimension to Bihar politics, already shaped by the influence of Nitish Kumar and Lalu Prasad. With Singh’s departure, the BJP faces fresh challenges in retaining ground among backward caste voters ahead of the Assembly polls.
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UP woman found hanging at in-laws' home; family alleges dowry murder
Maharajganj (UP) (PTI): A 29-year-old married woman was found hanging at her in-laws' home here, with her in-laws claiming it was suicide while her mother alleging murder over dowry, police said on Sunday.
According to police, Anukriti (29) had married Manoj Gond six years ago and lived with her in-laws in Mahadeva village.
Her in-laws claimed that she died by suicide after allegedly hanging herself inside a room of the house on Saturday evening, police said.
After receiving information about the incident, a police team reached the spot and sent the body for a post-mortem.
Paniyara police station in-charge Sanjay Kumar Singh said that based on a complaint filed by the woman’s mother, a case was registered on Sunday against her husband Manoj Gond, mother-in-law Punam, father-in-law Sumer Gond, and brother-in-law Munna Gond.
The complainant alleged that Anukriti was being harassed for dowry by in-laws and was murdered over dowry-related demands, Singh said.
(Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on the state’s health helpline 104, Tele-MANAS 14416.)
