'Badka Phatak' in Ghazipur holds the sway over Purvanchal seats

THE 'Badka Phatak' (big gate) as locals used to call it-the ancestral house of gangster-politician Mukhtar Ansari in Ghazipur used to play a crucial role in deciding the outcome of over half a dozen Lok Sabha seats in eastern Uttar Pradesh.

- NAMITA BAJPAI

There was a perception that anyone contesting on a seat falling under his fiefdom would not get victory without visiting 'Badka Phatak' and taking the blessings of Ansari.

There was a rush of non-BJP political players to 'Badka Phatak' to express anguish over the death of the five-time former MLA and sympathise with his bereaved family, signifying his political significance. The top brass of the SP, BSP and Congress took to social media raising doubts over the cause of Mukhtar's death and demanded a probe.

The expression of concern for the dead gangster, who once was synonymous with terror in Purvanchal with over 60 criminal cases lodged against him, is attributed to his hold over Muslim votes for in Ghazipur, Mau, Jaunpur, Azamgarh, Varanasi and Chandauli districts, where Muslims constitute around 20% of the voters.

Political experts claim that to alter the political equations in the districts of his fiefdom, a letter written by the gangster used to be sufficient.