An FIR was registered against Union minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh ‘Lalan’ on Tuesday for making a controversial statement against Opposition leaders during campaigning for arrested JD(U) candidate Anant Singh in Bihar’s Mokama, the Patna district administration said.
The minister landed in a fresh controversy with the surfacing of a video in which he can be purportedly heard asking NDA supporters to intimidate the opponents on polling day.
“The video footage was examined by the District Administration, Patna. Following the investigation, an FIR has been registered against Lalan Singh alias Rajiv Ranjan Singh under the sections of the BNSS and the Representation of the People Act,” the Patna district administration said in a post on X.
The video is said to be of Mokama, which falls under Lalan’s Munger Lok Sabha seat, where the former JD(U) president’s defence of party candidate Anant Singh in a murder case has already drawn flak from the Opposition.
In the video, Lalan could be heard saying, in Magahi, that “There are some people out here whom you must not allow to venture out on polling day. Lock them up inside their homes. If they cajole you, accompany them to polling booths and ensure that they go home after casting their vote.”
Lalan’s latest video, the authenticity of which could not be independently verified by PTI, went viral on social media.
Controversial former Bihar MLA, Anant Singh, who seeks to reclaim Mokama seat, along with his two other associates -- Manikant Thakur and Ranjeet Ram -- were arrested in the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday in connection with the murder of Jan Suraaj Party supporter Dular Chand Yadav.
Yadav died while he was campaigning for Jan Suraaj Party’s candidate Piyush Priyadarshi in the Mokama area last week.
It may be recalled that Lalan, while campaigning for Singh in Mokama on Monday, alleged that the incident, in which the Jan Suraaj Party supporter was killed, was a “conspiracy” and asserted that Anant Singh cooperated with the police and followed the rule of law.
Lalan Singh, along with Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, on Monday visited Mokama and campaigned for Anant Singh.
Addressing a gathering in Mokama, Lalan Singh had said, “After Anant Singh’s arrest, every person should contest the election as Anant Singh. When Anant Babu was out, my responsibility was less, but now that he is in jail, my responsibility has increased even more.”
“From today, I have taken the command of Mokama into my own hands. I must say that there is a conspiracy behind the arrest of Anant Singh. The truth will soon come out as the police are investigating the case and people will come to know about the conspirators also,” he added.
The opposition parties -- RJD and Congress -- on Tuesday reacted sharply to Lalan’s latest video.
The RJD, in a post on X, wrote, “Lalan Singh, while running a bulldozer over the chest of the Election Commission, is saying that the poor should not be allowed to step out of their homes on voting day! They should be locked inside the house, if they create too much fuss, then take them along and let them cast their vote. Where is the dead commission?”
Commenting on Lalan Singh's latest video, senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala, in a post on X wrote, “This is the new example of gundagardi and jungle raj’ in Bihar! With defeat in sight, JD(U)-BJP leaders are now openly saying they won’t let people step out of their homes on voting day, will lock them inside, and if they resist too much, will drag them along to cast their votes.”
