BJP MLC severs ties with son fielded by Cong as LS candidate

A BJP leader in Uttar Pradesh has announced severing ties with his son after he was fielded by the Congress as a Lok Sabha candidate and alleged the opposition party exploited "political differences" within his family. The Congress Saturday announced Arvind Kumar Singh, son of BJP MLC Jaivir Singh, as its candidate from the Gautam Buddh Nagar constituency, which is currently represented by BJP leader and Union minister Mahesh Sharma.

The Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party have already fielded Satveer Nagar from the constituency. The BJP is yet to announce its candidate. In a Facebook post on March 17, Jaivir Singh said his whole family including wife Raj Kumari Chauhan, a former Lok Sabha MP from Aligarh, their three sons and a nephew have "complete loyalty" with the BJP and are committed to the public policies of the party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi

"But my son Arvind Kumar Singh started expressing a different ideology ever since his marriage two years ago and he started staying separately from the family," the MLC said. Jaivir Singh, who earlier served as a BSP MLA from Barauli, said he joined the BJP in 2017. Arvind was opposed to the BJP and did not took its membership, he said.

"Therefore, he was also released from the position of the Chancellor of the (Noida International) University. Now all social and political relations with him have come to an end," Singh said. "Taking advantage of the political differences within my family, the Congress made this strategic move and hatched the political conspiracy," the MLC said, stressing he and his remaining family members are still committed party workers.

Jaivir Singh's wife Raj Kumari Chauhan was a Lok Sabha MP from 2009 to 2014 from the BSP. Arvind Singh, who was the chancellor of the family-run university, had in 2014 unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha poll from Aligarh on a BSP ticket.

Refuting his father's claim of a "political conspiracy", Arvind Singh said it was not the Congress which approached him but the other way round. He said he was always influenced by the "secular and democratic" ideology of the party. "Earlier I was in the BSP, which too had a similar ideology. I have always wanted to be in public service and the Congress' secular and democratic ideology attracted me and that is why I chose the Congress and I was happy that they trusted me with my candidature," he told PTI.

"As regards what my father has said, I respect whatever he says. I love him and respect him. He is my father. Whatever he says is because he cares for me," Arvind said, adding he was hopeful that with time his father would understand his choice and everything would be normal again. Earlier on Tuesday, Arvind Singh was met with some criticism by a group of local Congress members during a visit to the party office in Greater Noida.

"It was an old-timer in the party, who I have gathered has the habit of putting across his views in this manner. But we had a discussion and things are fine," he added. With around 22.5 lakh voters spread across Noida, Jewar, Dadri, Khurja and Sikandrabad areas, the Gautam Buddh Nagar goes to poll on April 11 during the first phase of the seven-phased Lok Sabha elections.