Can BJP Penetrate the Impregnable Fortress of Mukhtar Ansari?

The party has strategically cracked three Muslim-dominated seats in recent years

- Sunita Aron

Here's a legend about two gangster-turned politicians of eastern UP. It goes like this: Mukhtar Ansari's deadly rivalry with Brijesh Singh dates back to his college days. He was fond of cricket and once had a tussle with Singh's family during a game. Mukhtar's friend was killed, triggering an unending rivalry in the region.

The region may be on the boil again if the Mau assembly by-polls are held.

I heard the story about the cricket rivalry in 2007, when Mukhtar, his MP brother Afzal Ansari and two other family members were in jail in connection with the Krishnanand Rai murder case. Rai was a close aide of Brijesh Singh and the enmity had led to gang wars and spread to the political arena.

Mukhtar Ansari, who mostly remained in jail since 2005, died in prison in March 2024. He had 65 criminal cases lodged against him, including 14 cases of murder. On the other hand, Brijesh Singh was released from jail after 13 years in prison in August, 2022.

Mukhtar Ansari belonged to an illustrious family but entered the world of crime at the age of 15. His grandfather Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari was a freedom fighter who is said to have worked closely with Mahatma Gandhi. A row of photographs in Ansari's house in Yusufpur, Mohammadabad, bear testimony to the illustrious legacy.