Bihar: BJP MLA sentenced to four years in prison, faces disqualification
Patna, July 4 (IANS) Raju Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Sahebganj constituency in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur district, has been sentenced to four years’ imprisonment by Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court in connection with a fatal celebratory firing incident that occurred on New Year’s Eve in 2018.
The court convicted Singh of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and offences under the Arms Act. However, it acquitted his wife, Renu Singh, and two co-accused, Rana Singh and Ramendra Singh, in the same case.
The conviction is expected to have immediate political consequences for the legislator. Under Section 8(3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, any Member of Parliament or Member of a Legislative Assembly who is convicted and sentenced to two years or more in prison stands disqualified from the date of conviction, unless a competent court grants relief in accordance with law.
As Singh has been sentenced to four years’ imprisonment, his Assembly membership is liable to be disqualified under the Act, which would result in the Sahebganj Assembly seat becoming vacant, subject to the applicable legal process.
The case stems from an incident on the night of December 31, 2018, when celebratory gunfire allegedly occurred during New Year’s festivities. According to the prosecution, a bullet struck architect Archana Gupta, who sustained serious injuries and died on January 3, 2019, while undergoing treatment.
Following the trial, the Rouse Avenue Court held Raju Singh guilty under the Arms Act and for culpable homicide not amounting to murder, sentencing him to four years in prison.
Raju Singh belongs to the Rajput community and has represented the Sahebganj Assembly constituency through multiple political parties during his career. He entered the Bihar Legislative Assembly for the first time in 2005 on a Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) ticket. Ahead of the 2020 Bihar Assembly elections, he joined the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) and retained the seat.
In 2022, Singh left the VIP and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), after which he was inducted into the Bihar government as a minister. He later won the 2025 Bihar Assembly election from Sahebganj as the BJP candidate.
The conviction marks a significant political setback for the BJP leader, and any further legal developments, including an appeal against the judgment, will determine the case’s future course.
–IANS
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