In a significant departure from its previous strategy, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is expected to drop its heavyweight leader and sitting MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh from Uttar Pradesh’s Kaiserganj constituency. This will pave the way for his son, Karan Bhushan Singh, to make his political debut amid the raging #MeToo controversy surrounding the former.
Karan Bhushan Singh, a 32-year-old political greenhorn, will likely be fielded by the BJP from Kaiserganj, a seat his father has won three times consecutively. The decision comes as Brij Bhushan Singh, the former chief of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), faces numerous accusations of sexual harassment from several women wrestlers.
Born on December 13, 1990, Karan Bhushan Singh has a background in sports, having competed at the national level in double trap shooting. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration (BBA) and law from Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University and a diploma in business management from Australia.
Karan’s political footprint has been limited, as he is the president of the Uttar Pradesh Wrestling Association, a position he currently holds. Previously, he was the senior vice president of the same association. Additionally, he is the president of the Cooperative Village Development Bank in Nawabganj, Gonda.
The Kaiserganj Lok Sabha constituency, one of the 80 parliamentary seats in Uttar Pradesh, will go to polls in the fifth phase on May 20. Karan Bhushan Singh is expected to file his nomination on May 3, marking his foray into the rough and tumble of electoral politics.
For the BJP, fielding Karan Bhushan Singh could be a strategic move to distance itself from the controversies surrounding his father while retaining the family’s political clout in the region. However, the decision also carries risks, as the young candidate will face the daunting task of establishing his credentials and garnering support in the face of the allegations against his father.
The Kaiserganj seat has been a BJP stronghold, with Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh defeating the BSP’s Chandradev Ram Yadav in 2019 and the Samajwadi Party’s Vinod Kumar in 2014. Whether Karan Bhushan Singh can maintain the party’s hold on the constituency remains to be seen as the high-stakes political drama unfolds.
As the countdown to the elections begins, all eyes will be on Kaiserganj, where the BJP’s gambit to field a fresh face could either pay dividends or backfire in the face of the #MeToo storm engulfing the party’s veteran leader.
As an independent media platform, we do not take advertisements from governments and corporate houses. It is you, our readers, who have supported us on our journey to do honest and unbiased journalism. Please contribute, so that we can continue to do the same in future.
