Lok Sabha Elections 2024: Caught between a rock & hard place, BJP picks Brij Bhushan Singh's son for Kaiserganj seat

Lucknow: Choosing his son as its candidate from Kaiserganj Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh instead of sitting MP and former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Brijbhushan Sharan Singh -- who faces sexual assault' allegations -- BJP was perceived to be maintaining a balancing act.

After much dilly-dallying, the saffron camp on Thursday nominated Karan Bhushan Singh as its candidate from Kaiserganj seat replacing the controversial former WFI president.

Sources within the BJP told DH that the saffron party had been caught between a rock and a hard place after Singh refused to back down from the electoral contest and had even launched his election campaign in the constituency. 

Sources said that Singh had made it known to the leadership that he could explore other options if he was dropped. Singh, who had met the leaders of Muslim community recently to greet them on the occasion of Eid, had said that he enjoyed good relations with SP founder Mulayam Singh Yadav.

''I always had cordial relations with Mulayam Singh Yadav as long as he was alive even though I was among the first to be arrested after the demolition of Babri Masjid in Ayodhya,'' he had said. 

Sources said that it took a lot of persuasion from the BJP top leadership to make Singh agree to the candidature of his son.

''There was no option before the party....we could not have given an opportunity to the opposition to pounce on us by fielding Brijbhushan and we also did not want him as a rival....we still expect criticism but the decision to field his son will blunt the attacks,'' a senior BJP leader said while speaking to DH here.

That Singh was indispensable for the BJP could easily be understood when, despite sharp criticism from different quarters, the saffron party did not act against him.

Singh was also not on good terms with UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath and in the past the former had attacked his own government in the state.

He had sharply criticised his own government, when floods had hit several eastern and central districts in the state, including Gonda, Baharaich, Ayodhya and some others.

''The people have been left on the mercy of the god,'' he had then remarked, criticising the state government for not being able to provide succor to the flood affected people.

While the BSP has fielded Narendra Pandey from Kaiserganj, the SP has not yet declared its candidate from the seat.

Friday is the last day for filing nomination papers. The seat would go to polls on May 20 in the fifth phase of polling.