Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav on Tuesday questioned the mysterious absence of Samajwadi legislator Vijay Misra. Mr Misra has been missing since 2008 when he was elected to the state Assembly in a byelection from Gyanpur seat in Bhadohi district.
“Vijay Misra has not returned home after he won the assembly seat. If he is alive, his life is in grave danger. The Mayawati government has declared a cash reward of Rs 2.5 lakhs on his head. This kind of reward money is not even announced for dreaded dacoits. My party has brought the issue of Misra going missing before the Governor and the Vidhan Sabha Speaker but no action has been taken,” he said.
Mr Vijay Misra, who has criminal antecedents, was first booked for running an auto-lifting gang and has been absconding ever since. In July this year, he was named as an accused in the bomb attack on UP minister Nand Gopal Nandi in Allahabad.
Mr Yadav, while replying to a question, said that the chief minister was fully aware of the MLA’s whereabouts and two BSP minister were responsible for the disappearance of the legislator.
He accused the UP DGP, Karamvir Singh, of setting up false cases against Vijay Misra. “Karamvir Singh nursed a grudge against the MLA from the time he was posted as SSP in Varanasi. He is now using his authority to target Misra,” Mr Yadav said.
Meanwhile, the Samajwadi Party president on Tuesday clearly hinted that expelled SP leader Mohammed Azam Khan could return to the party fold in the near future. “Azam Khan is a founder member of the party. He was expelled due to some reasons. We are in touch with him and talks are on,” Mr Yadav said in reply to a question.