Hall of shame in UP grows bigger by day

There have been many before him and there will be many after him.

BJP MLA Kuldeep Sengar, charged with rape of a minor girl and the murder of her father in police custody, is the latest entrant to the “Hall of Shame” in UP. He is in the exalted company of former ministers and legislators.

Another recent entrant in this hall of shame being the former SP minister, Gayatri Prajapati who was booked for the rape of a mother and her minor daughter on the directives of the Supreme Court. Mr Prajapati was arrested last year and is still in jail.

In December 2010, the then BSP MLA Pushottam Naresh Dwiwedi was charged with the raping and illegally confining a girl in his house in Banda. When the girl managed to escape, he got her arrested on charges of theft but fate later caught up with him and the case was given to CBI after which he was arrested and sent to jail.

In 2007, Anand Sen , BSP MLA form Faizabad, was inducted into the council of minister but could not be sworn in since he was in jail on murder charges. Another swearing in ceremony was held for him when he got bail. Six months later, in November 2007, he was charged with the kidnapping and murder of a dalit girl and was asked to resign.

He was given a life term by the lower court but later acquitted by the high court.

In 2013, SP MLA from Sultanpur, Arun Varma, was charged for the gang rape of a girl but the Akhilesh government later made sure that the legislator got a clean chit during investigations.