Raghuraj Pratap Singh

:"This article is about the politician from Pratapgarh, Uttar Pradesh in India. For the politician from Gonda, see Kirti Vardhan Singh."

"Kunwar" Raghuraj Pratap Singh, more commonly known as Raja Bhaiya (1969 - ) is an Indian criminal-politician and scion of the Bhadri dynasty (Oudh line [ [http://www.uq.net.au/~zzhsoszy/ips/b/bhadri.html BHADRI (Taluq)] - University of Queensland] ) of Kunda, Uttar Pradesh. He is under trial in 35 criminal cases including several of murder, assault, possession of illegal weaponslike AK-56 rifles, etc., and is currently an Independent MLA, having been elected from Kunda in the Uttar Pradesh state assembly elections, 2007. Seen as an ally of Mulayam Singh Yadav's Samajwadi Party, Raja Bhaiya has been a minister in the Mulayam government. In the period, 2002-2004, he was jailed on terrorism charges resulting from a large cache of weapons found with him.

He is one among many such criminal-politicians in Uttar Pradesh. "Kunwar", or Prince, is an honorific title.

Life

Raja Bhaiya was born to Udai Pratap Singh of the satellite royal family Bhadri in 1969. He was the first in his family to enter politics; his Doon School educated father was largely a recluse.

Raghuraj was educated at
Lucknow University, and fought and won the state elections from the Kunda seat in 1993, as an Independent. He was officially 26 years oldcite news
title = Even in jail, Raja Bhaiyya is a force to reckon with (Elections 2004)
author = Vinay Kumar
publisher = The Hindu
url = http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/2004/03/17/stories/2004031701351200.htm
date = Mar 17, 2004
accessdate = 2007-08-06] , but was possibly underage at the time. In the Indian general election, 1999, he put up his cousin Akshay Pratap Singh against the incumbent Ratna Singh (also a princess from a related family). it is in this election that Raja Bhaiya started using strongarm and criminal intimidation tactics.

Jailed on terrorism charges

In 2002, On an FIR filed by a dissident BJP MLA Mr.Puran Singh Bundela of alleged kidnapping and threatening with dire consequences, got Raja Bhaiya arrested on the orders of then Chief Minister at the early hours about 3:00 Am of 2 November 2002. Later Mayawati-led government in Uttar Pradesh declared him a terrorist, and he was sent to jail under Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA), along with his father Udai Pratap Singh and cousin Akshay Pratap Singh [http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/The_gang_of_Raja_Bhaiyya/articleshow/2144591.cms The gang of Raja Bhaiyya] Times of India - June 24, 2007] . Subsequently, Akshay managed to get bail, but Raja Bhaiyya's pleas were rejected many times.

During this period, a police raid on his "Beti Palace" residence uncovered a large cache of 57 rifles including an illegal AK-56 Chinese-built Kalashnikov weapon, a skeleton in the palace lake, and also a large amount of unaccounted for jewelry and cash. The skull on the skeleton is said to be that of scooterist Santosh Misra who had been kidnapped and killed and his body dumped in this lake [cite news
title = Police framed evidence against Raja Bhaiya: Witness
author = Sharat Pradhan
publisher = rediff.com
url = http://rediff.co.in/news/2003/jan/28up1.htm
date = January 30, 2003] . Mishra allegedly refused togive way to Raja Bhaiya's cavalcade and, in effect, overtook it. In Kunda,"people are expected to stand with folded hands when Raja Bhaiya passes by"cite news
title = By hook or by crook
author = Purnima S. Tripathi
publisher = Frontline
url = http://www.flonnet.com/fl2004/stories/20030228002704300.htm
date = Volume 20 - Issue 04, February 15 - 28, 2003
accessdate = 2007-08-06] . According to villagers, he bred crocodiles in this artificial lake, and people who dared defy were fed to the reptiles.

From jail to cabinet minister

However, within 25 minutescite news
title = Caught in the POTA tr

author = George Iype and Ehtasham Khan
publisher = rediff.com
url = http://in.rediff.com/news/2004/mar/11spec1.htm
date = 2004-03-11
accessdate = ] of the
Mulayam Singh Yadav coming to power in 2003,all POTA charges against him were dropped. However, the Supreme Court debarred the state government from dismissing POTA charges

Eventually the repressive POTA act was repealed in 2004, and although the courtagain refused to release Raja Bhaiya [cite news
title = Politician held on terror charge
author = Ram Dutt Tripathi
publisher = BBC News, Lucknow
url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4435840.stm
date = 14 November 2005
accessdate = 2007-08-06] , the Mulayam Singh government managed to get his cases cleared. He subsequently became a powerful man in the government, and was accused by police officer R.S. Pandey (who led the raid on his house) of having launched a vendetta against him [cite news
title = Raja Bhaiya cases: DSP being `victimised'
author = SC upholds stay on proceedings
publisher = The Tribune, Chandigarh
url = http://www.tribuneindia.com/2004/20040828/nation.htm#7
date = 2004-08-28
accessdate = 2007-08-06] .

In 2005, he became the minister for Food and Civil Supplies, and despite his pending criminal cases, he came to be assigned the highest level of security (Z-category) provided by the state [cite news
title = Now, Z security for Bhaiyya
author = Aman Sharma
publisher = Indian Express
url = http://www.indianexpress.com/full_story.php?content_id=73090
date = June 22, 2005] , though the threats against him were not specified.

2007 Elections

In the Uttar Pradesh state elections, 2007, he was overwhelmingly elected from Kunda with a margin of nearly half the votes castElection Commission of India: Uttar Pradesh state elections, 2007, [http://archive.eci.gov.in/May2007/pollupd/ac/states/S24/Aconst98.htm Results, constituency 98] . ] over Shiv Prakash Mishra of the Bahujan Samaj Party. He had stood as an Independent, supported by the Samajwadi Party, and with succinct support from the Bharatiya Janata Party, which did not field candidates against him.

He also wields considerable influence over five assembly constituenciesin the Pratapgarh region, as well as somein neighbouring Bihar. In election rallies in this region where he is present, the actual candidate may never speak or even be mentioned in his speech;"they are all shadows. Raja Bhaiya, alone, is the substance." [cite news
title = Election 2002: The secret of Raja Bhaiya's success
author = Prem Panicker
publisher = rediff.com
url = http://www.rediff.com/election/2002/feb/20_upr_prem_spe_1.htm
date = 2002-02-20
accessdate = 2007-08-06] .

His cousin and political follower Akshay Pratap Singh alias "Gopalji" won the 2004 elections to the 14th Lok Sabha from Pratapgarh. Much of his campaign against Congress leader, princess Ratna Singh (from a related branch of the family), was planned from the jail premises where Raja Bhaiya was incarceratedcite news
title = Muscle and mafia links still matter in Uttar Pradesh
author = J.P. Shukla
publisher = The Hindu
url = http://www.hinduonnet.com/2004/04/15/stories/2004041500781200.htm
date = Apr 15, 2004
accessdate = 2007-08-09] .

After the 2007 elections, Mayawati swept to power with a majority, and Raju Bhaiya is again under the police radar. Recently, he was declared leader of a criminal gang("gang number 232" [cite news
title = The gang of Raja Bhaiyya
author =
publisher = Times of India
url = http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Lucknow/The_gang_of_Raja_Bhaiyya/articleshow/2144591.cms
date = 24 Jun 2007
accessdate = 2007-08-06] ) with about 105 members, and moth-balled legal cases pending against him are moving again.

"Raja Bhaiya" is also the name of a 2003 Hindi film Raja Bhaiya (film).

References

External links

* [http://www.rediff.com/election/2002/feb/20_upr_prem_spe_1.htm The secret of Raja Bhaiya's success] Rediff - February 20, 2002