News Analysis India

Tag: Jayant Chaudhary

  • RLD chief asks farmers to continue protest till there is legal guarantee for MSP

    By PTI

    MUZAFFARNAGAR: A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a repeal of the three farm laws, RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary on Saturday called it a victory of farmers and urged them to continue their protest till there is a legal guarantee for MSP.

    Chaudhary made the remarks at a rally in Baghra village which comes under Charthawal assembly constituency.

    On Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the Centre would repeal the three farm laws, marking a climbdown by his government to meet the unrelenting demand of the farmers.

    The RLD chief welcomed the Centre’s decision and called it a victory of the farmers.

    “But the farmers’ agitation is not over yet. They should continue their protest to get their remaining demands fulfilled,” he said.

    Attacking the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh, Chaudhary claimed that the dispensation has failed to fulfill its promises.

    He alleged that the UP government is spending money on advertisements and not doing development work.

  • 2022 UP polls: RLD snubs Congress, Jayant Chaudhary says talks with SP in final stages

    By Express News Service

    LUCKNOW: Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) chief Jayant Chaudhary on Tuesday claimed his party’s alliance talks with Samajwadi Party were in the final stages and soon a decision in this regard would be made public.

    Jayant ruled out the possibility of an alliance with the Congress which had reportedly offered him a Rajya Sabha seat in lieu of the poll understanding. Recently, Jayant happened to meet Congress general secretary and party’s UP in-charge Priyanka Gandhi at the VIP lounge of Lucknow airport. Later, both of them left for Delhi in a chartered aircraft of the Chhattisgarh government. The meeting had given wings to speculations of a possible electoral tie-up between the two parties ahead of the 2022 electoral battle.

    Political pundits claimed that both the Congress and Samajwadi Party were out to woo the jat party (RLD) following traction among the jat community RLD has got recently in the wake of the ongoing farmers’ unrest over three contentious farm laws in western UP.

    The Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), which was once a very influential political force in western UP, is now striving to regain its lost ground riding on the wave of farmers’ protest in which the RLD’s core Jat voters are at the epicentre. The unrest among farmers in western UP has given RLD the hope of putting on a good show in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly election.

    On the other, RLD has been contesting elections in UP in alliance with the Samajwadi Party since 2014 and has failed to perform substantially in 2017 and 2019. Now, the fray in 2022 will be a do or die battle for the RLD.

    ALSO READ | 2022 UP polls: Will enter the fray if party decides so, says Yogi Adityanath 

    In the 2017 UP Assembly polls, the SP had won 47 seats out of 298 it contested in alliance with the Congress and lost 177 seats in comparison to its 2012 figures of 224 seats. The Jayant Choudhary-led RLD won only one seat which was eight below its 2012 assembly election performance. Meanwhile, the BJP had won 130 seats from western UP.

    In 2019,  with the grand SP-BSP alliance in place, RLD was given just three seats – Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat and Mathura– spared by the SP from its quota. The RLD lost all three with Chaudhury Ajit Singh losing in Muzaffarnagar and Jayant in Baghpat.

    Clearing the air on his meeting with Priyanka saying it was no pressure tactic to get a bigger chunk of seats from Samajwadi Party, RLD chief Jayant said: “It was an informal meeting and it was prevalent among leaders of earlier times as well. The BJP has changed this culture, and people have become enemies of each other in politics.”

    Meanwhile, Chaudhary said the RLD would fulfil all promises made in the party manifesto, including one crore jobs to youths, setting state advisory price (SAP) for sugarcane and guaranteed payments to cane growers within 14 days, if it is voted to power in the state.

    However, the highly placed sources claimed that within the SP-RLD alliance, some issues over seat-sharing a lingering. While RLD wants to contest 70 seats, SP is willing to give them around 30 seats only. 

    Many believe that the RLD is banking on the traditional Jat and Muslim alliance which used to form late Chaudhary Charan Singh’s successful political plank.  After all, it is the question of political survival for Jayant Chaudhury.

  • UP polls: RLD chief rules out possibility of alliance with Congress

    By PTI

    MUZAFFARNAGAR: RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary ruled out the possibility of an alliance with the Congress in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.

    Talking to reporters in Shamli Sunday evening, he asserted that his party’s alliance with the Samajwadi Party (SP) was in “final stage”.

    The RLD leader had recently met Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra at the Lucknow airport, and later both of them left for Delhi in a chartered aircraft of the Chhattisgarh government, a development that set tongues wagging in political circles.

    On being asked that the meeting was perceived as arm-twisting tactics of the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) to exert pressure on SP with regard to seat sharing for the state polls, a senior RLD leader had said, “No pressure has been exerted by anyone. This was an informal meeting (shishtaachaar bhet), and it was prevalent among leaders of earlier times. The BJP has changed this trend, and people have become enemies of each other in politics.”

    Meanwhile, Choudhary said the RLD will fulfill all promises made in the party manifesto, including one crore jobs to youths, setting state advisory price (SAP) for sugarcane and guaranteed payments within 14 days, if it is voted to power in the state.

    He also opposed the proposed amendments to the Electricity Act 2003.

  • UP election: RLD promises 50 per cent quota for women in government jobs, scrapping farm laws

    By Express News Service

    LUCKNOW:  Maintaining that seat sharing with the Samajwadi Party will be finalised shortly, Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) president Jayant Chaudhary released his party’s 22-point sankalp patra (statement of vows) for the Uttar Pradesh polls.

    One crore jobs, 150% of cost as MSP to potato farmers (same MSP to cane farmers in the first season), a three-fold hike in old age pension and Rs 1 crore for every martyr (army and police personnel) formed the mainstays of the Sankalp Patra, which was released in Lucknow on Sunday.

    The payment to cane farmers, which would be equal to 1.5 times of the production cost in the first season would be made in 14 days.

    Another major sop was 50% reservation for women in government jobs.

    The RLD, which has been dominant in western UP but saw its presence shrunk to just one seat in 2017, also announced a sports policy, jobs to one crore youth, Rs 4 lakh assistance to every family ravaged by the pandemic, doctor in every village and medicines for every family and scholarships for the backward castes students.

    The Sankalp Patra also promised to set up separate HC benches in eastern UP, western UP and Bundelkhand, besides the promise of passing resolution against the three new farm laws.

    “We’re in talks with Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and very soon the best seat sharing formula will be sorted out unanimously,” Chaudhary said. 

  • UP violence: Punjab parties seeks action against culprits; Rakesh Tikait rushes to the spot

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Saturday condemned the UP’s Lakhimpur Kheri incident in which two SUVs allegedly ran over a group of farmers, leading to violence that claimed eight lives.

    Other political parties in Punjab too demanded the registration of a case against those who “crushed farmers to death”.

    Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said he will visit Lakhimpur Kheri on Monday, along with a team of officials to have on a spot assessment of the situation there.

    Expressing deep anguish at the tragic incident, Channi said the “ghastly and inhuman act” must be condemned by all in the strongest possible words, according to a statement.

    Channi urged his counterpart in Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, to bring the culprits to book so as to ensure justice to the victims’ families.

    Eight people were killed on Saturday as violence erupted in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri during a farmers’ protest over Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit.

    Four of the dead were traveling in the vehicles and the remaining four were farmers.

    The farmers had assembled there to oppose Maurya’s visit to Banbirpur, the native village of Union Minister of State for Home and MP Ajay Kumar Mishra.

    The violence broke out after two SUVs allegedly ran over a group of anti-farm law protesters.

    Farmers alleged that the Union minister’s son was in one of the vehicles, a charge denied by Mishra.

    Former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh also sought a probe into the incident.

    “Thorough probe needed into the Lakhimpur Kheri incident. Justice must be ensured for the victims of the violence. Violence or provocation of violence is no solution to any problem.’: @capt_amarinder,” tweeted Amarinder’s media adviser.

    Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party MLA and Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, Harpal Singh, Cheema condemned the incident and said the culprits should be immediately put behind bars.

    He demanded that the farm laws should be repealed immediately.

    Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal demanded immediate registration of a murder case against the son of the Union minister for allegedly crushing farmers to death.

    “It seems the government is trying to protect the son of a Union minister of state, which is shocking and condemnable,” said Badal in a statement.

    The Union Home Ministry should direct the Uttar Pradesh government to provide justice to the families of dead farmers immediately, he said.

    Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu also sought registration of a case against the Union minister’s son.

    “No one is above the law, FIR under sec 302 IPC must be registered against Union Minister’s son for murder of innocent farmers, he should be immediately arrested and put behind the bars for this barbaric act !!,” tweeted Sidhu.

    Congress MP Partap Singh Bajwa also demanded the registration of a case against the son of the Union minister.

    “All perpetrators including the MoS Home’s son should be booked for murder, for crushing the protesting farmers. Anything less than that would be a gross miscarriage of justice,” said Bajwa in a tweet.

    Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait left for Lakhimpur Kheri on Sunday along with his several supporters following reports of violence there during a farmers’ protest in which eight people were killed.

    While Tikait will be reaching Lakhimpur Kheri by Sunday midnight, Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary too will visit the place on Monday.

    “Farmers’ blood has been shed! I will reach Lakhimpur Kheri tomorrow,” Chaudhary tweeted in Hindi.

    While leaving Ghazipur on the Delhi-Ghaziabad border for Lakhimpur Kheri, Tikait, the BKU’s national spokesperson, saiud claimed “several” farmers are feared dead during the violence in which two vehicles were also allegedly set on fire.

    Eight people were killed as violence erupted in Lakhimpur Kheri during a farmers’ protest over Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit, an official said.

    Two SUVs were set on fire by angry farmers, reports said, after they hit a group of protesters.

    Four of the dead were travelling in the vehicles, a UP government official said in Lucknow.

    Lakhimpur Kheri District Magistrate Arvind Kumar Chaurasia said four farmers and four others were killed.

    The farmers had assembled there to oppose Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit to Banbirpur, the native village of Union Minister of State for Home and MP Ajay Kumar Mishra.

    In a video message, Tikait claimed the farmers turned violent when they were attacked while returning after protests.

    “The farmers in Lakhimpur were returning after the protest when they were attacked. Some of them were run over, while the fire was also opened on them. According to the information we have so far, several people have died in the incident,” Tikait said in a video message that he posted on Twitter.

    In a separate statement, he said the incident has “once again exposed the cruel and undemocratic face of the government”.

    “The people sitting in the government have revealed today to what extent they can stoop to suppress the farmers’ movement. But the government is forgetting that we did not bow down even to the Mughals and Firangis (referring to the British) for our rights. The government should not test the farmers’ patience any further. The farmer may die but is not going to get scared,” he said.

    He urged the UP government to register a murder case against the “killers of farmers” and ensure their arrest.

    He also appealed to the farmers to maintain peace, saying the victory will be theirs.

    “If the government does not come to its senses, not a single BJP leader will be allowed to leave his or her house,”{ the farmer leader threatened.

    The violence broke out after two SUVs allegedly ran over a group of anti-farm law protesters who were demonstrating against the visit of Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya at Tikonia-Banbirpur road in Lakhimpur Kheri district, some 130 km off state capital Lucknow.

  • UP violence: Punjab parties seek action against culprits; Rakesh Tikait rushes to the spot

    By PTI

    CHANDIGARH: Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Saturday condemned the UP’s Lakhimpur Kheri incident in which two SUVs allegedly ran over a group of farmers, leading to violence that claimed eight lives.

    Other political parties in Punjab too demanded the registration of a case against those who “crushed farmers to death”.

    Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said he will visit Lakhimpur Kheri on Monday, along with a team of officials to have on a spot assessment of the situation there.

    Expressing deep anguish at the tragic incident, Channi said the “ghastly and inhuman act” must be condemned by all in the strongest possible words, according to a statement.

    Channi urged his counterpart in Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, to bring the culprits to book so as to ensure justice to the victims’ families.

    Eight people were killed on Saturday as violence erupted in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri during a farmers’ protest over Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit.

    Four of the dead were traveling in the vehicles and the remaining four were farmers.

    The farmers had assembled there to oppose Maurya’s visit to Banbirpur, the native village of Union Minister of State for Home and MP Ajay Kumar Mishra.

    The violence broke out after two SUVs allegedly ran over a group of anti-farm law protesters.

    Farmers alleged that the Union minister’s son was in one of the vehicles, a charge denied by Mishra.

    Former Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh also sought a probe into the incident.

    “Thorough probe needed into the Lakhimpur Kheri incident. Justice must be ensured for the victims of the violence. Violence or provocation of violence is no solution to any problem.’: @capt_amarinder,” tweeted Amarinder’s media adviser.

    Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party MLA and Leader of Opposition in the Punjab Assembly, Harpal Singh, Cheema condemned the incident and said the culprits should be immediately put behind bars.

    He demanded that the farm laws should be repealed immediately.

    Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal demanded immediate registration of a murder case against the son of the Union minister for allegedly crushing farmers to death.

    “It seems the government is trying to protect the son of a Union minister of state, which is shocking and condemnable,” said Badal in a statement.

    The Union Home Ministry should direct the Uttar Pradesh government to provide justice to the families of dead farmers immediately, he said.

    Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu also sought registration of a case against the Union minister’s son.

    “No one is above the law, FIR under sec 302 IPC must be registered against Union Minister’s son for murder of innocent farmers, he should be immediately arrested and put behind the bars for this barbaric act !!,” tweeted Sidhu.

    Congress MP Partap Singh Bajwa also demanded the registration of a case against the son of the Union minister.

    “All perpetrators including the MoS Home’s son should be booked for murder, for crushing the protesting farmers. Anything less than that would be a gross miscarriage of justice,” said Bajwa in a tweet.

    Bharatiya Kisan Union leader Rakesh Tikait left for Lakhimpur Kheri on Sunday along with his several supporters following reports of violence there during a farmers’ protest in which eight people were killed.

    While Tikait will be reaching Lakhimpur Kheri by Sunday midnight, Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Jayant Chaudhary too will visit the place on Monday.

    “Farmers’ blood has been shed! I will reach Lakhimpur Kheri tomorrow,” Chaudhary tweeted in Hindi.

    While leaving Ghazipur on the Delhi-Ghaziabad border for Lakhimpur Kheri, Tikait, the BKU’s national spokesperson, saiud claimed “several” farmers are feared dead during the violence in which two vehicles were also allegedly set on fire.

    Eight people were killed as violence erupted in Lakhimpur Kheri during a farmers’ protest over Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit, an official said.

    Two SUVs were set on fire by angry farmers, reports said, after they hit a group of protesters.

    Four of the dead were travelling in the vehicles, a UP government official said in Lucknow.

    Lakhimpur Kheri District Magistrate Arvind Kumar Chaurasia said four farmers and four others were killed.

    The farmers had assembled there to oppose Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya’s visit to Banbirpur, the native village of Union Minister of State for Home and MP Ajay Kumar Mishra.

    In a video message, Tikait claimed the farmers turned violent when they were attacked while returning after protests.

    “The farmers in Lakhimpur were returning after the protest when they were attacked. Some of them were run over, while the fire was also opened on them. According to the information we have so far, several people have died in the incident,” Tikait said in a video message that he posted on Twitter.

    In a separate statement, he said the incident has “once again exposed the cruel and undemocratic face of the government”.

    “The people sitting in the government have revealed today to what extent they can stoop to suppress the farmers’ movement. But the government is forgetting that we did not bow down even to the Mughals and Firangis (referring to the British) for our rights. The government should not test the farmers’ patience any further. The farmer may die but is not going to get scared,” he said.

    He urged the UP government to register a murder case against the “killers of farmers” and ensure their arrest.

    He also appealed to the farmers to maintain peace, saying the victory will be theirs.

    “If the government does not come to its senses, not a single BJP leader will be allowed to leave his or her house,”{ the farmer leader threatened.

    The violence broke out after two SUVs allegedly ran over a group of anti-farm law protesters who were demonstrating against the visit of Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya at Tikonia-Banbirpur road in Lakhimpur Kheri district, some 130 km off state capital Lucknow.

  • I’ll never let farmers’ honour down: Jayant Chaudhary

    By PTI

    BAGHPAT: Rashtriya Lok Dal president Jayant Chaudhary on Sunday said he will never let farmers and their ‘pagdhi’ (head gears) down.

    The grandson of former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh and son of former Union Minister Chaudhary Ajit Singh, Jayant Chaudhary made this declaration near here at Chhaprauli during ‘rasam pagdi’, a traditional ritual of honouring someone with a head gear, organised for his late father.

    The ‘rasam pagdi’ for the former Union minister was attended by people from several districts of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Delhi and Rajasthan.

    “I will never let your ‘pagdi’ down. You have blessed former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh and former Union minister Ajit Singh. I am lucky to have your blessings. I will always stay with you and will never let you down,” Jayant Chaudhary proclaimed.

    Bharatiya Kisan Union chairman Naresh Tikait too attended the function and paid tributes to Ajit Singh.

  • Yogi govt caught in caste-based matrix; has not delivered jobs, growth: RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary ahead of UP polls

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Asserting that the BJP’s alleged “apathy” towards protesting farmers will hurt it in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary on Sunday said artificial issues such as “love jihad” and “cow terror” will not work as issues of development will win in the elections.

    As the focus shifts from the West Bengal polls earlier this year to the high-stakes election battle in Uttar Pradesh in 2022, newly-appointed Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Chaudhary asserted that his party will not allow a communally polarised campaign to ruin the Hindi heartland state in the run up to the assembly polls.

    In an interview with PTI, Chaudhary, who took over as RLD chief after his father Chaudhary Ajit Singh’s demise last month, said his party and the Samajwadi Party have a good rapport and a strong working relationship.

    He said details need to be worked out for a formal alliance for the polls.

    Asked if a ‘Mahagathbandhan’ or a grand alliance is needed in UP to take on the BJP and whether the BSP and the Congress would be part of such an alliance, Chaudhary said, for him, issues come first and an understanding of those needs to be built between all alliance partners.

    “Who can be accommodated depends on who is honestly open to working together on the common framework,” the 42-year-old leader said.

    ALSO READ: MLAs feel CM Yogi Adityanath aloof, relies more on babus

    On whether the Congress would play a significant role in the assembly polls despite its poor showing in the panchayat elections, Chaudhary said he would not like to comment on the Congress’ plans and chances.

    Asked about the speculation over UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s political future as CM and reports about Cabinet reshuffle in the state, Chaudhary said the BJP is just trying to divert attention and create an illusion of dialogue to manage the disgruntled elements in the party.

    “Social engineering doesn’t come about by tinkering with one or two leaders at the top. The fact is that BJP’s Uttar Pradesh government has been caught in a caste-based matrix and has not delivered jobs, economic growth, and efficient governance to people,” he alleged.

    The state government’s Covid response has been atrocious and no one can forget the scenes of dead bodies in the Ganga, he added.

    “Now, after four-and-a-half years to create rumours of change in leadership is a poor attempt to shift focus from failures,” Chaudhary said.

    Talking about the farm laws protests and whether they would be a key issue in the polls, he said farmers will and should be the biggest poll issue in our country, and asserted that as a class they have been denied their rights for far too long.

    ASLO READ: Uttar Pradesh’s health services in bad shape, CM Yogi only concerned about power, says SP chief Akhilesh Yadav

    “The Centre’s new laws are prescribing a takeover of the entire market and value chain by the private sector and the withdrawal of the government from procurement and subsequent monopolisation will hurt producer and consumer interests,” the RLD chief said.

    The “apathy and insensitive” attitude towards the protesting farmers will continue to haunt and hurt the BJP in polls, he claimed.

    Chaudhary has participated in a number of ‘kisaan panchayats’ in western Uttar Pradesh, where his party has had a significant presence over the years, and campaigned aggressively against the Centre’s farm laws.

    Farmers from various parts of the country are protesting at Delhi’s borders against the three farm laws brought by the Centre last year, alleging that the legislations will hamper farming.

    Asked about the electoral chances of the Opposition against the BJP in UP, Chaudhary said “when the nation is grieving and hurting, the Hindi heartland also will respond appropriately”.

    “Love jihad, cow terror, Kairana exodus and other useless artificial issues will be rejected; healthcare, education and balanced development will win (in the polls),” he asserted.

    The Opposition in UP has been alleging that cow vigilante violence is on the rise in the state, a charge denied by the BJP.

    The ‘Kairana exodus’ was a reference to a BJP MP’s claim in 2016 that close to 350 Hindus had left Kairana over alleged threats and extortion by criminal elements belonging to a particular community.

    Asked how he plans to turnaround the fortunes of the party which drew a blank in the last assembly polls, Jayant Chaudhary said, “I am humbled by the opportunity and the faith reposed in me by the Party at this critical juncture.”

    “Chaudhary Saheb’s untimely passing has been a jolt for all of us. Just as any family copes with stress responds by coming together, the office bearers and workers of Rashtriya Lok Dal will need to work cohesively and look to the future,” Chaudhary said.

    For reviving the party, Chaudhary said, as a first step he wants to engage with people who have worked at the grassroots and have political experience.

    He said the party is also in conversation with a lot of leaders from other parties who want to join the RLD and work with us, Chaudhary said.

    Asked if a fragmented opposition will be able to pose a challenge to the BJP in UP, the RLD chief said poll arithmetic has its own rhythms and rules and it’s not as easy to combine different parties and fight elections and assume a “2+2=4 result”.

    “It is not as if the multiplicity of players is helping the incumbent. Some of the parties could also be taking away votes which might otherwise shift to the BJP,” he argued.

    Asserting that it is most important to pick the right issues, Chaudhary said social developmental deficits need to be addressed aggressively if we want the state to progress.

  • Days after Ajit Singh’s death, Jayant Chaudhary takes over as Rashtriya Lok Dal president

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: The Rashtriya Lok Dal (RJD) on Tuesday elected Jayant Chaudhary as the party president days after the demise of his father Ajit Singh.

    The decision was taken at the party’s national executive meeting.

    “Shri Jayant Chaudhary Ji has worked along with several experienced social workers including Chaudhary Charan Singh ji and Chaudhary Ajit Singh ji. At the moment of crisis, he should join the party and strengthen the organization”, read the release by RLD.

    In the meeting, RLD leaders appreciated the recent performance of its party in the Uttar Pradesh Panchayat elections. The party also expressed concerns over damages caused by Cyclone Tauktae in Maharashtra, Goa and Gujarat and expressed condolences towards those who lost their lives.

    As per the release, in the meeting, Jayant Chaudhary supported farmers’ protest against the farm laws that has been going on for the last six months and asked party workers to participate in a massive protest that will take place on May 26. He demanded the Central government to negotiate with the farmers and resolve the problem quickly.

    The newly elected President also called upon the party workers to wholeheartedly prepare for the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly elections that will be held in the year 2022.

    Ajit Singh, who was the president of the RLD, passed away due to COVID-19 on May 6. He was a prominent leader in western Uttar Pradesh and was seven-time MP from Uttar Pradesh’s Baghpat. 

  • PM Modi calls Jayant Chaudhary, express condolences on the passing away of Chaudhary Ajit Singh

    PM Narendra Modi on Thursday spoke to Jayant Chaudhary and expressed condolences on the passing away of Chaudhary Ajit Singh.

    Ajit Singh, Former Union Minister and RLD leader and son of former PM Charan Singh passed away. He was 82.

    Singh, a prominent leader in western Uttar Pradesh, was undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Delhi after he tested positive for the coronavirus on April 20. Ajit Singh’s condition deteriorated on Tuesday night due to a lung infection. The RLD chief passed away on Thursday.

    “Chaudhary Ajit Singh ji was diagnosed as COVID positive on April 20. He battled his condition till the very end and breathed his last today morning on May 6,” Jayant, the RLD Vice President, said in a tweet.

    Jayant also shared a note on Twitter on behalf of the family members which read: “Throughout his life journey, Chaudhary Sahib was loved and respected by many. He, in turn, cherished this bond with all of you and gave his best consideration and efforts for your welfare.

    “As our nation confronts the horrific pandemic, it is our humble request to all those who wish to pay their respects, to please stay at home as far as possible.