Ansari, the son of former gangster and politician Mukhtar Ansari, was elected as an MLA for the first time in 2022, winning the Mau Sadar assembly seat on an SBSP ticket as part of the Samajwadi Party-led coalition.
The SBSP MLA received a two-year prison sentence from a special MP-MLA court on Saturday, resulting in the seat being declared vacant.
The SBSP has realigned itself, now partnering with the ruling BJP government, and its party president serves as a cabinet minister in Uttar Pradesh.
”This was our seat. It was contested (during the 2022 assembly elections) under our symbol. Therefore, it is only right that our party seeks to contest for it,” SBSP chief Om Prakash Rajbhar stated during a press conference.
According to the Representation of the People Act, a court ruling of two years or more in prison leads to automatic termination of an MLA’s membership in the legislative assembly.
When asked if the SBSP would support their disqualified MLA, Rajbhar responded, ”If he approaches the court, the party stands by him. At present, the high court is on vacation and will be closed for a month.” With Ansari’s disqualification, the SBSP now holds five MLAs in the 403-member UP Legislative Assembly.
Rajbhar mentioned that he has met with Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to advocate for direct elections for the district panchayat chairman and block heads.
”A proposal is being developed to conduct these elections through direct voting by the people to prevent the influence of money and muscle power,” he added.
Right now, district panchayat chairmen are elected by district panchayat members, while block heads are chosen by block members.
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