In Ghazipur, IITian minister pitted against a bahubali

SAYADPUR (GHAZIPUR): Union minister Manoj Sinha, who is pitted against BSP candidate Afzal Ansari, the elder brother of jailed mafia don Mukhtar Ansari, in Ghazipur Lok Sabha constituency, says for him the battle is between an IITian and a Bahubali.
At an election meeting in Sayadpur, Sinha told TOI, “The fight is between and IITian and bahubali. The fight is between a learned engineer and crime master.The fight is also between a clean government and corrupt, tainted men of tainted parties.”
Sinha is a civil engineer from the prestigious IIT-BHU.
Ghazipur comprises five Vidhan Sabha constituencies — Jakhanian, Saidpur, Ghazipur Sadar, Jangipur and Zamania, and the only concern which Sinha has faced since 2014 is that BJP could win only two out of these seats in 2017 assembly polls.
Sinha, who was once the front-runner for UP chief ministerial post, however, said that despite a caste-based alliance between SP-BSP-RLD to woo Muslims and Yadavs, he will win with a hefty margin as he has kept the thrust of poll speeches on development — whether four-lane roads, waterway network, including a cargo terminal at Ghazipur, and upcoming air terminal.
“It is Prime Minister Narendra Modi who brought IITians like me and (late Goa CM) Manohar Parrikarji. It is indeed essential that such learned people add value to the cabinet and politics,” he says. At a meeting near Sayad railway level crossing in Ghazipur-Varanasi highway on Thursday night, Sinha had burst on to the stage with signature gamcha and Bhojpuri limerics as his assets.
“Bahut tez mic mai bolwa, 40553 mail Bandra station ke platform number 3 se 6:53pm par Ghazipur ke station ke liye rawana hone….,” he left the cue. This prompted “wali hai” from the crowd.
The vivid description of a train arrival from Mumbai to Ghazipur was enough for the people to realise that Sinha is also junior railway minister who has brought more than 18 trains and about as many new stops to the city apart from a railway training institute.