Jamuna Nishad

Jamuna Prasad Nishad (born 1953) is an Indian politician from the Bahujan Samaj Party, representing the Pipraich constituency in the Uttar Pradesh Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly). Nishad became the Minister for Fisheries in the Mayawati government,cite news
title = UP minister fired after mob he headed kills policeman
publisher = NDTV
url = http://www.indianexpress.com/story/320440.html
date = 2008-06-09
accessdate = 2008-06-18] but was forced to resign after being named on charges of murdering a policeman.cite news
title = Mayawati sacks minister for murder
publisher = NDTV
url = http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20080052323
date = 2008-06-08
accessdate = 2008-06-08] He is also named in eight other criminal charges. The name is more commonly written Jamuna Nishad, and sometimes Yamuna Nishad, Jamuna Nisad or Jamuna Prasad.

Political career

Nishad draws his political support from the Scheduled Caste community in eastern UP, and also from Muslims. Despite contesting in about fifteen elections, he has won only twice, once as a village mayor ("gram pradhan") and then in 2007 to the state legislative assembly. He first contested in the Assembly elections in 1985 as an independent, and then again in 1989 and 1991, losing on all three occasions. Subsequently he was fielded by the Samajwadi Party, [cite news
title = Group war peaks in Uttar Pradesh
author = Sharad Gupta
publisher = Indian Express
url = http://www.indianexpress.com/res/web/pIe/ie/daily/19990928/ipo28045.html
date = 1999-09-28] and lost Lok Sabha elections to Yogi Adityanath in 1998, 1999 and 2004. [ [http://gorakhpur.nic.in/polit1.htm Political Representation ] ]

In 1996, he changed affiliations to the Bharatiya Janata Party but lost again from Pipraich. In 2002, he changed his assembly constituency to Paniyara as an SP candidateand lost. He finally won as gram Pradhan from his native village and in the Uttar Pradesh Elections 2007, he won from the Pipraich constituency with a 7% (6,000 vote) margin [ [http://archive.eci.gov.in/May2007/pollupd/ac/states/s24/Aconst168.htm State Elections 2007 - Constituency wise detail for 168-Pipraich Constituency of Uttar Pradesh ] ] over the criminal-politician and liquor-baron Jitendra Jaiswal alias Pappu, erstwhile minister under Kalyan Singh of the BJP.

He was appointed as Minister of Fisheries by Bahujan Samaj Party leader Mayawati.

Murder of police constable

On the night of June 8 2008, Nishad went in his official "red-beacon" car to the Kotwali police station in Maharajganj district, near Gorakhpur, demanding that the police pursue the perpetrators of a rape on a Dalit girl.cite news
title = Former Indian minister, 12 supporters arrested for allegedly killing police officer
author = Associated Press
publisher = International Herald Tribune
url = http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/06/10/asia/AS-GEN-India-Ex-Minister-Arrested.php
date = 2008-06-10
accessdate = 2008-06-10] The rape had occurred on May 26, but the police resisted filing a First Information Report until June 5. The girl testified to rape in court, but an initial medical report, contested by the Dalits, had determined that there was no rape. The police then downgraded the crime to eve-teasing and released the boy accused of the crime. However the Dalit community felt that the police were biased towards the perpetrator, and Nishad was there to protest.

At one stage, the group attempted to enter the strongroom in the police station, and constable Krishnanand Rai, a noted hockey player, [cite news
title = Cops dither on Maya minister
publisher = The Telegraph
url = http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080610/jsp/nation/story_9389914.jsp
date = 2008-06-10
accessdate = 2008-06-10] was apparently preventing their entry. In the ensuing altercations, someone from Nishad's group fired three rounds, and two bullets hit constable Rai in the chest, killing him. This was part of an attempt to "ransack the police station and loot the armoury,", according to Deputy Inspector General of Police, G L Meena.cite news
title = UP minister charged with cop's murder, resigns
author =
publisher = Times of India
url = http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/India/UP_minister_charged_with_cops_murder_resigns/articleshow/3111272.cms
date = 2008-06-08]

acked from the ministry

Subsequently, Mayawati summoned Nishad for discussions and later dropped him from the ministry, while appointing a special medical board to investigate the rape charges. Nishad has denied that he went to the Kotwali police station at all, claiming that he had merely "called up some officials and asked them to probe the rape case," and that the violence was instigated by angry locals. However, police inspector GP Sharma has said that the minister had "barged into the premises" of the police station. [cite news
title = UP minister accused of killing constable
publisher = Manorama online
url = http://www.manoramaonline.com/cgi-bin/MMonline.dll/portal/ep/contentView.do?contentId=4084388&contentType=EDITORIAL&BV_ID=@@@
date = 2008-06-08] Nishad's denial has been contradicted by Mayawati herself, who said: “Since the minister was present on the spot, I have asked him to resign. He will not be re-inducted (into the ministry) till the time the inquiry is completed.” [cite news
title = Maya sacks minister for murder
author = Deepak Gidwani
publisher = DNA (newspaper)
url = http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1169817
date = 2008-06-09
accessdate = ]

Nishad could not be arrested until three days after the the constable's death, since the concurrence of Mayawati was required. Nishad has six other cases of rioting and assault against him.cite news
title = Maharajganj Kotwali case: 12 arrested
author =
publisher = Times of India
url = http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Lucknow/Maharajganj_Kotwali_case_12_arrested/articleshow/3115615.cms
date = 2008-06-10
accessdate = 2008-06-10]

However, the cause Nishad was arguing at the police station appears to be viable. Two days later, the special medical board appointed by Mayawati reported that the girl had indeed been raped. [cite news
title = Special Medical Board confirms rape of Nishad girl
publisher = Indian Express
url = http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Special-Medical-Board-confirms-rape-of-Nishad-girl/320878/
date = 2008-06-10
accessdate = 2008-06-10] Given the influence wielded by the Nishad caste, another Nishad politician, Dharmraj Nishad, was inducted as a full minister into the cabinet. [cite news
title = Another Nishad inducted into UP Cabinet
publisher = The Statesman
url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=2&theme=&usrsess=1&id=207788
date = 2006-08-12
accessdate = 2006-08-17] The investigating police officer in the case, Munni Ram, was suspended.

Even at the time of his election, Jamuna Nishad had been identified as one of the many Criminal Politicians in Uttar Pradesh. He is the third minister to be dropped from the Mayawati cabinet on criminal grounds. [cite news
title = Mayawati dithers on minister’s arrest
publisher = The Statesman
url = http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=2&theme=&usrsess=1&id=207519
date = 2008-06-10
accessdate = 2008-06-10]

References