Grim law and order a major issue in Pratapgarh: Congress

Alleging that the law and order situation is "grim" in the district, erstwhile princess of Kalakankar state in Pratapgarh and Congress candidate Ratna Singh is trying to regain the seat once more in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

Singh, who has held the seat for three terms in the past, is pitted against BJP's Sangam Lal Gupta and Jansatta Dal's Akshay Pratap Singh. SP-BSP-RLD alliance has also fielded Ashok Kumar Tripathi from the seat.

Busy in campaigning, Singh has also got the support of Prashuram Sena, an organisation with a considerable following in the area.

Speaking to ANI, Singh said, "People are getting ransom calls and murders are happening in the city. There is no control on crimes in the region."

She also stated that the issue of national security will not be affecting the elections.

"National security is not an issue. Our army has been showing its valour from past 70 years", she said.

Singh is also being backed by Congress stalwart Pramod Tiwari and Rampur-Khaas MLA Aradhana Mishra, both of whom are campaigning in the region to garner support for her.

Tiwari, while speaking to ANI, also resonated similar sentiments on the issue of law and order and said, "The law and order situation is certainly an issue in the area. In a democracy, it is important that the elections are conducted in a transparent and impartial way."

He also condemned Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his statement against former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and said, "This is very shameful and we are very hurt by the statement. If Atal Bihari Vajpayee would have been alive even he would have scolded Narendra Modi for making such statement and would have asked him to follow 'Raj dharma'."

The Pratapgarh Lok Sabha seat consists of five assembly constituencies namely Raniganj, Rampur Khas, Vishwanathganj, Patti and Pratapgarh.

In 2014 elections, the seat went to Apna Dal's tally which had fought the elections with the support of BJP.

Voting in the Pratapgarh constituency will take place in the sixth phase on May 12. The counting of votes will take place on May 23.