Dayashankar Singh had been expelled by the BJP for six years after he made derogatory comments against BSP chief Mayawati. (Source: PTI) Dayashankar Singh had been expelled by the BJP for six years after he made derogatory comments against BSP chief Mayawati. (Source: PTI)

Expelled BJP leader Dayashankar Singh was arrested in Buxar on Friday, several days after charges were filed against him for making a derogatory remark against BSP chief Mayawati. The former Uttar Pradesh BJP vice president was arrested in a joint operation led by the state police departments of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Singh was recently spotted at a Shiva temple in Jharkhand’s Deoghar district. Photographs of Singh have surfaced online after a priest who helped him with the darshan uploaded the picture on his Facebook account. It was deleted later.

Buxar Superintendent of Police Upendra Kumar Sharma confirmed Singh’s arrest from Chini Mil mohallha. Singh had been hiding at an acquaintance’s residence after his return from Deoghar. Singh, who hails from Chhotka Rajourgaon under Simri block of Buxar, had however not gone to seek refuge at his paternal village house, which is looked after by a villager. Singh’s parents stay at Lucknow.

Buxar police sources said UP STF team had been tracking his location ever since they learn about him visiting a temple in Deoghar. “As he belongs to Buxar, he has several relatives here and hence, we had been coordinating with UP STF. We raided one of his acquaintances’ residence at Chini Mil on a tip-off and arrested the suspended BJP leader”, said a senior police officer.

Singh was criticised for drawing parallels between Mayawati and a sex worker while accusing the former chief minister of selling party tickets ahead of the Uttar Pradesh polls. Singh’s comment caused a huge furore inside and outside Parliament, forcing the BJP to expel their party leader for six years. An FIR was filed against him by BSP following the incident.

WATCH VIDEO: Expelled BJP Leader Dayashankar Singh Arrested In Bihar

Singh’s family members claimed harassment by BSP members and threatened to file an FIR against them. A Bihar Court subsequently ordered an FIR against Mayawati and other BSP leaders for ‘inflammatory’ comments on the whole episode.

BSP also claimed that Singh made derogatory references to Mayawati as part of a “planned conspiracy” of the BJP to cover up the ‘atrocities against Dalits’ in Gujarat.

With inputs from ANI.

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