Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh cabinet minister and Nishad Party chief Sanjay Nishad held a protest for the second consecutive day Friday over the killing of a party worker, this time outside the Gonda district collectorate office.
Nishad had staged a protest outside Lucknow’s King George’s Medical University (KGMU) Thursday, where 45-year-old Vinod Kumar Sahani died during treatment Thursday after being attacked in Gonda.
Sahani, a resident of Gonda, was returning home after shutting his utensils shop Wednesday night when a group of men allegedly stopped him on the way and attacked him. He was initially taken to Gonda Medical College and later referred to KGMU in Lucknow after his condition deteriorated.
Police have so far arrested three people in connection with the case.
On Thursday, after reaching KGMU following Sahani’s death, Nishad had demanded that all accused be arrested, or that they be “killed in an encounter”. Former Bihar minister and Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) chief Mukesh Sahani was also present during the protest.
The issue acquired a political dimension after Samajwadi Party’s OBC wing state president Rajpal Kashyap also joined the protest outside KGMU and demanded strict action against those responsible.
While speaking to ThePrint, Kashyap said, “Sanjay Nishad’s demand is genuine. How can a worker from the Nishad community be killed when the government talks about strong law and order? Why was there a delay in the post-mortem? Why did none of the senior BJP ministers come out in support of him?”
According to sources in the UP police, the post-mortem was delayed because the required documents did not reach the authorities on time, leading to protests by Nishad’s supporters.
‘Why have you deployed so much force?’
Nishad travelled to Gonda Friday and objected to the heavy police deployment outside the collectorate. He also pulled up Gonda Superintendent of Police Abhishek Jha, who had arrived with a bouquet to receive the minister.
“Why have you deployed so much force? It appears as if our people were goons and killers during British rule. What are you trying to do in the government today? Why are you damaging the government’s image?” Nishad said.
He told the police to deploy the force at the homes of the accused instead, arguing that this would prevent any arson or attempts by political opponents to create trouble.
Nishad then walked nearly 1 km from the circuit house to the collectorate along with party workers. Supporters raised slogans against the police and administration during the march, after which the minister sat on a dharna outside the collectorate.
Gonda District Magistrate Priyanka Niranjan later reached the spot and sat with the minister on the road as he raised his concerns.
Nishad has demanded action against the Station House Office (SHO) of Parsurampur police station and the entire police outpost staff, besides seeking strict punishment for those accused of killing Sahani.
‘Community comes first for me’
While speaking to ThePrint, Nishad said the interests of the Nishad community were his first priority and that he would continue to stand with its members.
“Community comes first for us. We will be with the community, wherever it is. I am a minister later, community comes first. It is society that has brought us this far,” he said. He said the demands of Sahani’s family should be met and those responsible should face strict action.
“If this is a zero-tolerance government, strict action is necessary,” Nishad said.
According to the FIR, Sahani was returning home from his shop Wednesday night when he was stopped near another shop. The distance between his shop and home was around 1 km. The attackers allegedly arrived on three to four motorcycles and assaulted him. The complaint also alleges that firing took place during the attack.
Nishad has raised concerns over officials before
The latest protest comes against the backdrop of Nishad’s earlier criticism of government officials. In July 2024, he had questioned the functioning of officials, saying ministers and MLAs were often not heard by the bureaucracy. He had also warned that such behaviour could affect elections.
Nishad had claimed that several legislators had been forced to write letters against officials because of their grievances. He said the conduct of some officials was creating resentment among party workers and could ultimately hurt the government electorally.
He had also alleged that some officials were influenced by the previous Akhilesh Yadav government and were working in a manner that could alienate voters from the BJP.
Nishad is not the only BJP ally to have recently expressed dissatisfaction with the functioning of officials in UP. Panchayati Raj minister and Suheldev Bharatiya Samaj Party (SBSP) chief Om Prakash Rajbhar has also publicly voiced his displeasure with officials in his department.
Could Rajbhar, Nishad change sides?
The repeated friction between BJP allies and the government has also fuelled speculation in Uttar Pradesh political circles about whether Rajbhar and Nishad could change sides ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. In the 2022 polls, Rajbhar’s SBSP contested with SP, whereas Nishad Party allied with SP during by-polls of Gorakhpur and Phulpur Loksabha seats in 2018.
Neither leader, however, has publicly indicated that he plans to leave the BJP-led alliance.
A senior Samajwadi Party leader on condition of anoymity told ThePrint, that the party’s doors were open, particularly for Nishad, and claimed that relations between Nishad and several SP leaders remained good.
“Nishad’s entry could benefit the Samajwadi Party in the Gorakhpur belt, where the party has traditionally not been very strong,” the leader said.
The leader, however, added that Rajbhar would first have to apologise for his past statements against SP chief Akhilesh Yadav if he wanted to join the party.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)