New Delhi: Afzal Ansari has been disqualified as a member of Lok Sabha after being convicted in the 2007 Gangsters Act case for kidnapping and murder. The former Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MP was sentenced to four years in prison and fined Rs 1 lakh by the court. As per the Parliament rules, a member sentenced to two years or more in prison is automatically disqualified.
BSP MP Afzal Ansari disqualified as a member of Lok Sabha representing the Ghazipur Parliamentary Constituency upon his conviction by the Court of Additional Sessions Judge, MP/MLA Court, Ghazipur.
— ANI (@ANI) May 1, 2023
Afzal and his brother Mukhtar Ansari were convicted in the same case and Mukhtar was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment. The MP-MLA court also imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on Mukhtar.
Afzal was bound to lose his Lok Sabha membership after the conviction as his prison sentence meant an automatic disqualification. Former Congress MP Rahul Gandhi saw a similar fate when was disqualified from Lok Sabha after a conviction in a 2019 defamation case where he was sentenced to 2 years.
Afzal Ansari was a BSP MP from Ghazipur in Uttar Pradesh.
Mukhtar and Afzal are also accused of the kidnapping and murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai, a case still pending.
Who is Afzal Ansari?
Afzal Ansari comes from an illustrious family which has served the nation several fields. His ancestors Late Dr. Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari, was once the President of the Indian National Congress and Late Brigadier Usman Ansari, a Mahavir Chakra awardee martyred in action. Late Faridul Haque Ansari and Shaukatullah Ansari were politicians and former MPs.
He is the son of Subhanullah Ansari and Begum Rabia, and has a Post Graduate degree from Post Graduate College, Ghazipur.
