Uttar Pradesh: Samajwadi Party leader attempts suicide after election defeat to BJP

Samajwadi Party’s Kanpur vice-president Narendra Singh alias ‘Pintu’ (55) allegedly attempted suicide by setting himself ablaze outside the Vidhan Bhawan in Lucknow on Thursday after his party lost the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly election to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).SP’s Kanpur district president Dr Imran said that Narendra Singh took the step because he felt the party lost the state Legislative Assembly election to the BJP due to irregularities in electronic voting machines (EVM).A businessman, Narendra Singh suffered 30 per cent burn injuries and is undergoing treatment at a civil hospital. The doctors have stated that his condition is critical. Shyam Babu Shukla, station house officer, Hazratganj police station, said they are yet to record Singh’s to know the exact reason behind his action.

According to the police, on Thursday, Singh came down to Lucknow from Kanpur. After hearing that the BJP was winning the election for the second consecutive time, Singh came outside the Vidhan Bhawan carrying petrol in a bucket, said the police. He poured it on himself and set himself on fire, said the police.Seeing the flames, the police team standing at some distance away ran in and doused the flame and rushed him to the hospital for treatment, added the police. Yogi Adityanath scripted history by scoring a major win for the BJP in Uttar Pradesh and becoming the chief minister of the state for a second consecutive term. The BJP swept the UP polls, winning on 255 of the 403 assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh. Meanwhile, Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party settled with 111 seats. The Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party trailed far behind, managing to win just 2 seats and one seat respectively. The election to Uttar Pradesh’s 403 constituencies was held over seven phases from February 10 to March 7. Across the seven phases, the voter turnout in Uttar Pradesh hovered between 55 and 65 per cent. The months leading up to the election saw aggressive campaigning from all sides. The battle was  largely between the ruling BJP (and allies) and the Samajwadi Party – Rashtriya Lok Dal combine, apart from the Congress and Bahujan Samaj Party.