Time to break illusion of self-proclaimed kings: Anupriya hits out at Raja Bhaiya

Apna Dal (Sonelal) national president Anupriya Patel on Friday took on Jansatta Dal (Loktantrik) president Raghuraj Pratap Singh for his decision to stay neutral in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. She, however, did not take any name.

Singh, also popular as Raja Bhaiya, is the son of the erstwhile king of the Bhadri estate of Pratapgarh Uday Pratap Singh. A seven-time MLA from Kunda, he recently spoke about his decision not to ally with any specific party despite being approached by the ruling BJP. His party has not fielded any candidate this poll season.

During a public rally in Pratapgarh’s Kunda, which falls under the Kaushambi parliamentary constituency, on Saturday, Patel said this was a golden opportunity to break the illusion of self-proclaimed kings “who think that Kunda is their fiefdom”. “In a free country, only voter is all-powerful. The task of making kings and paupers is in the hands of voters,” she said.

Patel, who was campaigning for the BJP’s Kaushambi candidate Vinod Sonkar at Manikpur Military Bagh area, said 75 years have passed since the country got independence.

Quoting Apna Dal founder and her father Sonelal Patel, she said, “He used to say that in a democracy, kings are born not from the womb of a queen, but by EVMs. Vinod Sonkar, the sitting MP, has changed the picture of the area over the past 10 years. We have to move forward with a bigger goal now and re-elect him,” she added.

Patel also addressed an election rally in Kaushambi, the last day of campaigning before the seat went to polls on Monday. Here too, she took her late father’s name to give an emotional speech about how he worked to uplift the society without holding any official post. “The NDA government is going to get a hat-trick under the leadership of PM Modi in 2024... we will form the government at the Centre for the third consecutive time.”