File picture of Bhojpuri star and independent candidate from Karakat constituency Pawan Singh during an election campaign for Lok Sabha elections, in Sasaram, Bihar on May 5, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI
The Bhartiya Janata Party on Wednesday expelled popular Bhojpuri film star and singer Pawan Singh from the party for “anti-party activities and maligning the image of the party”.
Pawan Singh had recently joined BJP but was in the fray to contest the Lok Sabha election as an Independent candidate from Karakat constituency.
The Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) leader Upendra Kushwaha is contesting the parliamentary poll from Karakat as NDA alliance candidate. The Opposition mahagathbandhan has pitted Raja Ram Singh (CPI-ML) against Mr. Kushwaha. In the last 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Mr. Kushwaha was defeated by JD-U candidate Mahabali Singh by over 80,000 votes.
“In the Lok Sabha polls, you are contesting against NDA’s official candidate and this is considered as anti-party activity. The party’s image has been maligned and you did this work against party’s discipline. So you are expelled from the party,” said the expulsion letter undersigned by Arvind Sharma, in-charge of State BJP headquarters.
“It is the party’s action and it is natural that if someone contests an election against the party’s official nominee, such actions are taken at the party level,” State BJP president and Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary told the media.
Pawan Singh, popular as “Pawar Star” had recently joined the BJP to contest the election from his home town Ara (Bhojpur). But the BJP fielded him from Asansol seat in West Bengal, which he refused for “personal reasons”.
A few days later, Mr. Singh filed his nomination papers from the adjoining Karakat seat as an Independent candidate to fulfill his “mother’s wish”. This soon generated huge excitement, especially among young voters of the constituency and upper caste Rajput voters, the community he belongs to.
The sitting MP from Ara and Minister R.K. Singh and other party leaders, too, had earlier told the media that they would request the party to expel Mr. Singh for contesting the polls against the BJP’s official candidate.
However, Pawan Singh’s mother Pratima Devi, too, had filed her nomination papers from the seat on May 14, but she withdrew her candidature after a few days.
The NDA candidate Upendra Kushwaha (RLM) was defeated by JD-U candidate Mahabali Singh in the 2019 elections when he had contested from his erstwhile party, Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP), which now has been renamed as Rashtriya Lok Morcha.
The Independent candidate Pawan Singh though has been catching much attention with his controversial Bhojpuri songs with lacy lyrics.
The Karakat Lok Sabha seat comprises six assembly segments — Nokha, Dehri, Goh, Karakat, Obra, Nabinagar — all of which are represented by RJD MLAs.
Karakat votes in seventh phase poll in Bihar on June 1.e.o.m.
