Sanjay Sinh, who has returned to Amethi, ostensibly, to reclaim his legacy but sympathy for Garima, his first wife, still is palpable in Amethi that considers her the ‘Rani’….reports Asian Lite News
Amethi, somehow, makes sure that it retains a strong element of emotions whenever elections are held. This time is no different.
The elections in Amethi have an interesting mix of candidates — a wife who is banking on sympathy for a jailed husband, an erstwhile Raja who is caught in a family feud that refuses to end, and a turncoat who has entered the fray with another party.
The BJP candidate from Amethi is the erstwhile Raja of Amethi and former MP Sanjay Sinh.
He is returning to state politics after over three decades and his entry has triggered another battle between his two wives.
Garima Singh objected to the omission of her name in Sanjay Sinh’s affidavit, claiming that her ‘alleged divorce’ had been struck down by court because her signatures were forged. She said that she remained his legal wife. The objection was dismissed.
In 2017, Amethi had witnessed a face-off between the wives — Garima Singh, who was the BJP candidate, and Ameeta Sinh, who contested on a Congress ticket. Garima won the election.
Sanjay Sinh, who has returned to Amethi, ostensibly, to reclaim his legacy but sympathy for Garima, his first wife, still is palpable in Amethi that considers her the ‘Rani’.
Sanjay Sinh claims it was his father Rananjay Singh who offered the Amethi seat to the Gandhis.
Rananjay Singh had won the first election after Independence from the Amethi seat as an independent candidate.
He later won elections on the Jana Sangh ticket in 1969 and Congress ticket in 1974.
Sanjay Sinh started his political career from Amethi in 1980 and people welcomed him with open arms.
In 1985, Sinh won again by getting a record 98 per cent of the votes polled. In 1989, he lost as a Janata Dal candidate.
Sanjay Sinh later joined the BJP. In the 1998 Lok Sabha election, he defeated Satish Sharma of the Congress.
He lost to Sonia Gandhi in the 1999 general elections. Wife Ameeta, won the Amethi Assembly seat in 2002 on a BJP ticket.
In 2004, the couple returned to the Congress. Ameeta won the 2004 Assembly bypoll and later the 2007 poll from Amethi.
In 2012, Ameeta lost to Gayatri Prasad Prajapati of the Samajwadi Party by a close margin and then to Garima Singh in 2017.
The couple then joined the BJP again.
Sanjay Sinh’s main challenger is Maharaji Prajapati, wife of former minister Gayatri Prajapati, who is in jail since 2017 on charges of rape and corruption.
Maharaji has been fielded by the Samajwadi Party and is essentially a homemaker.
Accompanied by her two daughters, she goes from village to village, weeping uncontrollably, and asking for justice for her husband.
“He used to distribute blankets to you but today, he is sleeping on the floor in the cold. I am here to get justice for my husband,” she says.
Her tears are moving mountains and the women, in particular, embrace her and her daughters, promising to vote for her.
The Congress candidate is Ashish Shukla, who switched from Congress to BSP, then to BJP and is again back to Congress while the BSP has fielded Ragini Tiwari and hopes to get the Brahmin support along with Dalits.
