According to a senior government official, four members of the Samajwadi Party who defected and cross-voted for the BJP during the Rajya Sabha elections on February 27 have been granted Y-category security. These four MLAs include Abhay Singh from Gosaiganj, Manoj Kumar Pandey from Unchahar, Rakesh Pratap Singh from Gauriganj, and Vinod Chaturvedi from Kalpi.
Their defection, along with three other party members, Pooja Pal, Rakesh Pandey, and Ashutosh Maurya, led to the victory of BJP candidate Sanjay Seth over Samajwadi Party nominee Alok Ranjan. Additionally, Maharaji Prajapati chose to abstain from voting.
Interestingly, Rakesh Pandey, one of the cross-voting MLAs, is the father of MP Ritesh Pandey, who recently shifted allegiance from the BSP to the BJP.
Under the Y-category security, each MLA will be protected by eight CRPF personnel, with five stationed at their residences and the remaining accompanying them during travel. Abhay Singh received his security cover on Friday, while the other three MLAs were granted it on Saturday.
Following the Rajya Sabha elections, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav remarked that the defection of these MLAs to the BJP was influenced by the incentives they received, including security arrangements.
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