The Mau Sadar assembly seat in Uttar Pradesh has been declared vacant after Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) MLA Abbas Ansari, son of gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, was disqualified from the state assembly due to his conviction in a hate speech case.
What exactly happened?
On Saturday, Abbas was sentenced to two years imprisonment in a 2022 hate speech case by a special MP-MLA court. While threatening the Mau administration during a public meeting at Paharpur ground on March 3, 2022, he had said he will “settle scores and teach them a lesson” after the elections.
Charges against Abbas Ansari
Defence lawyer Daroga Singh told PTI Abbas was charged under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including:
- Section 189 for issuing threats to harm a public servant,
2. Section 153-A for promoting enmity between different groups based on religion, caste, place of birth, residence, or language and disrupting communal harmony,
3. Section 171F for exerting undue influence during elections, and
4. Section 506 for criminal intimidation.
Singh stated that after hearing arguments from both sides, Special MP/MLA Court Judge K.P. Singh on Saturday convicted Abbas and sentenced him to two years each under Sections 189 and 153-A, one year under Section 506, and six months under Section 171-F. The sentences will run concurrently. In addition, Abbas was fined ₹2,000.
Under the Representation of the People Act, a legislator’s membership can be terminated if they are sentenced to two years or more by a court.
Abbas was elected as an MLA for the first time in 2022, winning the Mau Sadar assembly seat on an SBSP ticket, which was part of the Samajwadi Party-led alliance at the time.
Currently, the SBSP is allied with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led coalition, and its party president holds a cabinet position in the state government.
Prior to Abbas, the Mau Sadar seat was long represented by his father, veteran politician Mukhtar. He was lodged in Banda district jail and passed away from cardiac arrest at a hospital in Uttar Pradesh in March 2024.