Ajay Rai

2022-04-13T12:17:28Z

117.225.45.42:

{{Short description|Indian politician}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix =
| name = Sunil Rai
| native_name = Sunil Bhaiya
| native_name_lang =
| image =
| caption =
| office = Member of Indian National Congress
| term_start =
| term_end =
| constituency = Azamgarh Didarganj Constituency
| predecessor = New Seat
| successor =
| office2 = [[Member of the Legislative Assembly (India)|MLA]]
| term_start2 =
| term_end2 =
| constituency2 =
| predecessor2 =
| successor2 =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1969|10|07|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Varanasi]], [[Uttar Pradesh]], [[India]]
| citizenship = Indian
| party = [[Indian National Congress]] (2005–present)
| otherparty =
| spouse = Anupama Rai
| parents = Batuk Rai and Bala Devi
| residence = Lucknow
| alma_mater =
| website =
| footnotes =
}}
'''Sunil Rai''' (born 27 September 1969) is an Indian politician and a member of the [[Indian National Congress]] since 2005. <ref name=eci2014/>[[Varanasi|Azamgarh]]<ref>[https://www.financialexpress.com/elections/who-is-ajay-rai-a-history-sheeter-he-lost-to-modi-by-5-lakh-votes-in-2014-lok-sabha-election/1559091/ Who is Ajay Rai? A history-sheeter, he lost to Modi by 5 lakh votes in 2014 Lok Sabha election], The Financial Express (April 25, 2019)</ref><ref>[https://www.indiatoday.in/elections/lok-sabha-2019/story/priyanka-gandhi-narendra-modi-varanasi-congress-candidate-lok-sabha-elections-ajay-rai-1509775-2019-04-25 No Priyanka Gandhi vs Narendra Modi faceoff in Varanasi, Congress fields Ajay Rai], India Today (April 25, 2019)</ref>

A local [[strongman (politics)|strongman]] in the [[Varanasi district|Varanasi]] area, Rai has changed his party affiliations several times. He began his political career as a member of the [[Bharatiya Janata Party]]'s student wing. He won the [[Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly|Legislative Assembly]] elections from the Kolasla constituency three times in a row between 1996 and 2007 on a [[BJP]] ticket. He left the party after being denied a [[Lok Sabha]] ticket. He then joined the [[Samajwadi Party]] and unsuccessfully contested the [[2009 Indian general election|2009 Lok Sabha elections]]. Subsequently, he won the 2009 Legislative Assembly by-election from the Kolasla constituency as an [[independent (politician)|independent]]. He joined the [[Indian National Congress]] in 2012. After the [[Kolasla (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Kolasla constituency]] ceased to exist post-delimitation, he won the [[2012 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly election|2012 Assembly elections]] from the newly created [[Pindra (Assembly constituency)|Pindra constituency]], which comprises a sizeable portion of the former [[Kolasla (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Kolasla constituency]].

== Early life ==

Ajay Rai was born in Varanasi to Parvati Devi Rai and Surendra Rai in a [[Bhumihar]] family who were natives of [[Ghazipur district]].<ref>[http://www.hindustantimes.com/elections2014/state-of-the-states/congress-wants-a-brahmin-against-modi-not-digvijaya/article1-1201241.aspx Congress wants a Brahmin against Modi, not Digvijaya] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140513055457/http://www.hindustantimes.com/elections2014/state-of-the-states/congress-wants-a-brahmin-against-modi-not-digvijaya/article1-1201241.aspx |date=13 May 2014 }}</ref> According to ''[[The Indian Express]]'' and other Indian newspapers, he is known as a local ''bahubali'' (strongman) and is a [[history-sheeter]],<ref name="IE_Act_2009">{{cite news | url = http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/act-i-tainted-candidates-take-the-floor/438231/0 | title = AcT I: tainted candidates take the floor | date = 24 March 2009 | newspaper = Indian Express }}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-strongman-ajay-rai-dreads-the-420-tag-given-by-party-1978018 | title = Strongman Ajay Rai dreads the 420 tag given by party | date = 14 April 2014 | newspaper = [[DNA (newspaper)|DNA]] }}</ref> a term in Indian English for a person with a "history of criminal record".<ref>[https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/history-sheeter History-sheeter], Quote: Indian: A person with a criminal record. ‘a defendant with a rotten record: a history-sheeter, a bad egg’</ref>

He became an associate of Brijesh Singh, after his elder brother Awadhesh Rai was shot dead in Lahurabir area, allegedly by [[Mukhtar Ansari]] and his men in 1994. Earlier, he had been associated with Brijesh Singh and Tribhuvan Singh in several criminal cases since 1989.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/varanasi-polls-get-more-sensitive/436881/0 | title = Varanasi polls get more sensitive | newspaper = Indian Express | date = 20 March 2009 | author = Bhupendra Pandey }}</ref>

In 1991, his name had figured in an attack on the Anil Singh, the deputy mayor of Varanasi. In his [[First Information Report|FIR]], Anil Singh stated that Ajay Rai and others had fired at his jeep in the Cantonment area on 20 August 1991.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/5-cases-20-days-up-don-acquitted-as-witnesses-cops-turn-hostile/516287/0 | title = 5 cases, 20 days, UP don acquitted as witnesses, cops turn hostile | author = Bhupendra Pandey | date = 12 September 2009 | newspaper = Indian Express }}</ref> Rai was later acquitted in the case.<ref name="IE_Act_2009"/>

== Political career ==

=== Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ===

Rai began his political career as a member of the BJP's youth wing.<ref name="TheHindu_outsider_2014">{{cite news | url = http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/its-outsider-versus-local-in-varanasi-says-ajay-rai/article5889577.ece | title = It's outsider versus local in Varanasi, says Ajay Rai | newspaper = The Hindu | date = 9 April 2014 }}</ref> In 1996, Rai contested the [[Vidhan Sabha]] elections from the Kolasla seat on a BJP ticket.

He defeated the nine-time [[Communist Party of India|CPI]] MLA [[Udal (CPI-M politician)|Udal]] by a narrow margin of 484 votes. He went on to retain the seat in the 2002 and 2007 elections, defeating Awadhesh Singh of [[Bahujan Samaj Party]] (BSP) by much larger margins. A [[Bhumihar]] himself,<ref>{{cite news | url = http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/bjp-tieup-doesn-t-go-down-well-in-apna-dal-land/29043/0 | title = BJP tie-up doesn't go down well in Apna Dal land | date = 23 April 2007 | newspaper = Indian Express | author = Seema Chishti }}</ref> he relied on the [[Bhumihar]] and [[Brahmin]] [[vote bank]]s in the Kolasla constituency.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200704200313.htm | title = Kolasala assembly seat heading for a big fight | date = 20 April 2007 | newspaper = The Hindu }}</ref>

=== Samajwadi Party (SP) ===

In 2007, Rai denied the rumours that he was planning to join the [[Samajwadi Party]] (SP), stating that the SP was responsible for "all the ills plaguing the State".<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P3-1241689321.html | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140611123959/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P3-1241689321.html | url-status = dead | archive-date = 11 June 2014 | title = No plan to join SP: BJP MLA | newspaper = Hindustan Times | date = 22 March 2007 }}</ref> However, in 2009, he resigned as an MLA, after BJP refused to give him a ticket for contesting the Lok Sabha elections from Varanasi. He then joined SP, and contested the elections against BJP's [[Murli Manohar Joshi]]. He lost the elections, getting the third highest number of votes after Joshi and Mukhtar Ansari. His supporters allegedly campaigned for Joshi to ensure the defeat of his arch-rival Mukhtar Ansari in a communally-polarized environment.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/its-outsider-versus-local-in-varanasi-says-ajay-rai/article5889577.ece | title = It's outsider versus local in Varanasi, says Ajay Rai | date = 9 April 2014 | newspaper = The Hindu | author = Omar Rashid }}</ref>

=== Independent ===

After losing the Lok Sabha elections, he contested the Kolasla by-elections as an independent.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-former-bjp-mla-to-contest-kolasla-bypoll-as-independent-candidate-1295340 | title = Former BJP MLA to contest Kolasla bypoll as independent candidate | date = 5 October 2009 | newspaper = [[DNA (newspaper)|DNA]] }}</ref> He alleged that BSP had pressurised him to join the party, and when he refused, his security cover was reduced.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/varanasi/Rai-moves-court-against-withdrawal-of-addl-security/articleshow/6188740.cms?referral=PM | title = Rai moves court against withdrawal of addl security | date = 19 July 2010 | newspaper = The Times of India }}</ref> During the campaigning, he accused some police officers of pressurising his supporters to work for the candidate of the ruling BSP. When he protested against the alleged harassment, he and seven of his supporters were arrested.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://zeenews.india.com/news/uttar-pradesh/independent-candidate-for-kolasla-by-poll-arrested_574236.html | title = Independent candidate for Kolasla by-poll arrested | date = 28 October 2009 | publisher = Zee News }}</ref> Rai won the by-elections.<ref name="IndiaTV_drubbing">{{cite news | url = http://www.indiatvnews.com/print/news/bjp-sp-congress-get-drubbing-in-up-bypolls-212-4.html | title = BJP, SP, Congress Get Drubbing in UP Bypolls | date = 1 November 2009 | publisher = India TV }}</ref> In 2010, Rai staged a sit-in to protest the arrest of the local corporator Sanjay Singh and his associate Jitin Jha. The two had been arrested for assaulting and robbing a hotel owner. After Rai refused to end his protest, he and his supporters were arrested.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://archive.indianexpress.com/news/kolasala-legislator-arrested-for-creating-ruckus/673687/ | title = Kolasala legislator arrested for creating ruckus | newspaper = The Indian Express | date = 28 August 2010 }}</ref>

=== Indian National Congress (INC) ===

After the Kolasla constituency ceased to exist post-delimitation, Rai won from the [[2012 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly election|2012 Assembly elections]] from the new [[Pindra (Assembly constituency)|Pindra]] constituency, which comprises a sizeable portion of the former Kolasla constituency. He routed the BJP candidate, who received just 3,000 votes.<ref name="TheHindu_outsider_2014"/> When he contested the 2012 elections, Rai was an accused in 16 criminal cases, and was booked under the Gangster Act and [[Goonda]] Act. According to him, he had been framed in four cases by the [[Bahujan Samaj Party]] regime, while other cases were "mostly over".<ref>{{cite news | url = http://archive.tehelka.com/story_main51.asp?filename=Ws070212UP_Elections.asp | title = History-sheeters dominate Congress' list of electoral candidates | date = 7 February 2012 | publisher = Tehelka | author = Virendra Nath Bhatt | access-date = 15 April 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140416182041/http://archive.tehelka.com/story_main51.asp?filename=Ws070212UP_Elections.asp | archive-date = 16 April 2014 | url-status = dead }}</ref>

Rai was the Congress candidate in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from Varanasi. He lost to BJP's prime-ministerial nominee [[Narendra Modi]], coming third after [[Arvind Kejriwal]].<ref name=eci2014>{{cite web | url = http://eciresults.nic.in/ConstituencywiseS2477.htm?ac=77 | title = Constituency-wise results: Varanasi | publisher = Election Commission of India | accessdate = 17 May 2014 }}</ref>

On 5 October 2015, Rai was arrested for his alleged role in the violence and arson in [[Varanasi]] during a march by seers and other local leaders against police action on protesters opposing ban on immersion of [[Ganesha]] idols in the [[Ganges|Ganga river.]]<ref>[https://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-varanasi-violence-congress-mla-ajay-rai-arrested-fir-against-105-persons-2132171 Varanasi violence: Congress MLA Ajay Rai arrested, FIR against 105 persons]</ref> He was released 7 months later, when the Allahabad High Court granted him bail.<ref>{{cite news |author=Binay Singhi |title=Congress MLA Ajay Rai released from jail after 7-month imprisonment |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/varanasi/Congress-MLA-Ajay-Rai-released-from-jail-after-7-month-imprisonment/articleshow/52077047.cms |date=2 May 2016 |newspaper=The Times of India }}</ref>

In 2017, Rai lost [[2017 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly election|Uttar Pradesh state elections]] from Pindra as a Congress candidate.<ref name="FP_Pindra_2017">{{cite web |url=http://www.firstpost.com/uttar-pradesh/pindra-constituency-election-result-2017-24384 |title=Pindra - Uttar Pradesh Election Result 2017 - Party and Candidate Wise Full Winner List |publisher=Firstpost |access-date=2017-08-21 }}</ref> Since then, he has participated in protests against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Varanasi city.

In 2019, Rai lost the Lok Sabha Elections from [[Varanasi]] constituency as a Congress candidate against [[Narendra Modi]], securing third place.<ref name="businesstoday">{{cite web |title=Ajay secured third place in 2019 Varanasi Loksabha Elections. |url=https://www.businesstoday.in/lok-sabha-elections-2019/news/lok-sabha-election-result-2019-narendra-modi-big-lead-in-varanasi-congress-ajay-rai-trails/story/349240.html |publisher=Business Today}}</ref>

== Electoral record ==

{| class="wikitable"
! Year
! Election
! Constituency
! Party
! Result
! % of vote
! Source
|-
| 1996
| Vidhan Sabha
| [[Kolasla (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Kolasla]]
| [[Bharatiya Janata Party]]
| {{Won}}
| 26.67%
|<ref name="ECI_Kolasla">{{cite web | url = http://eci.nic.in/archive/May2007/pollupd/ac/states/s24/Partycomp229.htm | title = 229 – Kolasla Assembly Constituency | publisher = Election Commission of India | newspaper = 15 April 2014 }}</ref>
|-
| 2002
| Vidhan Sabha
| [[Kolasla (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Kolasla]]
| [[Bharatiya Janata Party]]
| {{Won}}
| 37.54%
|<ref name="ECI_Kolasla"/>
|-
| 2007
| Vidhan Sabha
| [[Kolasla (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Kolasla]]
|[[Bharatiya Janata Party]]
| {{Won}}
| 28.27%
|<ref name="ECI_Kolasla"/>
|-
| 2009
| [[2009 Indian general election|Lok Sabha]]
| [[Varanasi (Lok Sabha constituency)|Varanasi]]
| [[Samajwadi Party]]
| {{Lost}}
| 18.61%
|<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.empoweringindia.org/new/Pconstituency.aspx?eid=277&cid=77 | title = Lok Sabha Election 2009 – Uttar Pradesh: Constituency: Varanasi (77) | publisher = Empowering India | accessdate = 15 April 2014 }}</ref>
|-
| 2009
| Vidhan Sabha (by-poll)
| [[Kolasla (Vidhan Sabha constituency)|Kolasla]]
| Independent
| {{Won}}
|
|<ref name="IndiaTV_drubbing"/>
|-
| 2012
| [[2012 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly election|Vidhan Sabha]]
| [[Pindra (Assembly constituency)|Pindra]]
| [[Indian National Congress]]
| {{Won}}
| 29.31%
|<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.empoweringindia.org/new/constituency.aspx?eid=754&cid=384 | title = Uttar Pradesh Assembly Election 2012: Constituency: Pindra (384) | publisher = Empowering India | accessdate = 15 April 2014 }}</ref>
|-
| 2014
| [[2014 Indian general election|Lok Sabha]]
| [[Varanasi (Lok Sabha constituency)|Varanasi]]
| [[Indian National Congress]]
| {{Lost}}
| 7.34%
|<ref>{{cite web |url = http://eciresults.nic.in/ConstituencywiseS2477.htm?ac=77 |title = Constituency-wise results: Varanasi |publisher = Election Commission of India | accessdate = 5 June 2014 }}</ref>
|-
| 2017
| [[2017 Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly election|Vidhan Sabha]]
| [[Pindra (Assembly constituency)|Pindra]]
| [[Indian National Congress]]
| {{Lost}}
| 23.58%
| <ref name="FP_Pindra_2017"/>
|-
| 2019
| [[2019 Indian general election|Lok Sabha]]
| [[Varanasi (Lok Sabha constituency)|Varanasi]]
| [[Indian National Congress]]
| {{Lost}}
| 14.38%
|<ref>{{cite news |url = https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/elections/lok-sabha/india/varanasi-lok-sabha-election-results-live/articleshow/69443638.cms |title = Varanasi Election Results Live: Modi outdoes his 2014 performance |newspaper = Economic Times | accessdate = 17 Jun 2019 }}</ref>
|}

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rai, Ajay}}
[[Category:1969 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Uttar Pradesh]]
[[Category:Samajwadi Party politicians]]
[[Category:Politicians from Varanasi]]
[[Category:Uttar Pradesh MLAs 2012–2017]]
[[Category:United Progressive Alliance candidates in the 2014 Indian general election]]
[[Category:Uttar Pradesh MLAs 2002–2007]]
[[Category:Indian National Congress politicians]]
[[Category:People from Ghazipur]]

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Ajay Rai