Fugitive Bihar MLA surrenders in Delhi court

Controversial legislator Anant Singh, who had been absconding ever since Patna police raided his residence, surrendered in a Delhi court on Friday.

A muscleman-turned-MLA from Mokama in Bihar, Singh had been evading arrest ever since police recovered an AK-47 rifle, two hand grenades, live cartridges and magazines from his ancestral house last week. He was eventually booked under the newly-passed legislation Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), Arms Act and Explosives Act.

Hours before the police raided his residence in Patna on August 17, Singh escaped from the state capital. For the next few days, he kept releasing video footage from unidentified hideouts arguing that he would “surrender before the court but not before the Patna police.”

On Friday, hours before his surrender in Delhi's Saket court, Singh said that he was being framed by an ASP, Lipi Singh, who happens to be daughter of JD (U) Rajya Sabha MP, RCP Singh. “Ever since my wife Neelam Singh contested the Lok Sabha election against the JD (U) candidate and a close Nitish aide Lallan Singh from Munger, the ruling party has been hell-bent on settling scores with me,” said the Independent MLA.

Incidentally, Neelam lost the LS poll in Modi wave.

Anant, who was once a close associate of Nitish, first became a JD (U) MLA in 2005 and then again in 2010. But Nitish denied him ticket in 2015 after his arm-twisting tactics and complaints of extortion started pouring in. On the eve of 2015 Assembly elections, Nitish got him arrested too. But Anant, who is called Chotey Sarkar (mini-Government) in his fiefdom, contested the Assembly polls from Mokama as an Independent and emerged triumphant.

“A special police team will be sent to New Delhi to bring Anant Singh to Bihar,” said a top cop, who has been part of the arrest operation.