Varanasi, Feb 6 Jailed mafia don Brijesh Singh is ready to seek re-election as a member of the Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Parishad by contesting the upcoming elections through local bodies.
Varanasi district magistrate and returning officer for the election, Kaushal Raj Sharma, confirmed that the forms were procured in the name of Brijesh Kumar Singh a.k.a. Arun Kumar (Independent), Annapurna Singh a.k.a Poonam Singh (Independent) and Jairam Pandey of Lok Dal.
Brijesh had won this election in 2016. Before him, his wife Annapurna was the MLC on the same seat.
Brijesh Singh was arrested from Odisha in January 2008 and has been in jail ever since.
Brijesh was absconding since 2001 after being injured in an encounter with the gang members of another mafia and Independent MLA Mukhtar Ansari in Ghazipur district.
Brijesh is said to be close to some top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party and wields considerable clout in Thakur politics.
His brother Chulbul Singh was a BJP MLC in the Upper House of the state legislature and his nephew Sushil Singh is a BJP MLA.
Polling for the MLC election will take place on March 3.
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