Newly-elected Congress MlA Devender Singh alias Bittu Singh, who abstained from voting in the Rajya Sabha elections on June 11 jolting the Opposition unity, said on Monday that he did not want to go to jail.
"I never have been there. I had to take care of my lonely family as well," Singh maintained.
Talking from an undisclosed location to The Pioneer, the newly-elected legislator of Panki expressed strong reservation over any chance to go to the jail, the main reason of his going traceless.
"I had not vanished anywhere and was present at Hotel Arya on June 9 evening. Hemant Soren then talked to BK Hariprasad and told him that since there is a warrant against Bittu Singh let him go to any safer place. Again next day, I went to Subodh Kant Sahay's residence where Ajay Makan and others were present. Hemant Soren said that he is retrieving the FIR copy and permission would be granted to vote by 12 noon," says Singh, recalling the entire sequence of events on the eventful poll day on June 11 when despite having sufficient votes on paper, the JMM nominee for the Rajya Sabha Basant Soren lost the poll to BJP's Mahesh Poddar.
"Meanwhile, I came to know that the Palamu SP has formed teams and raids are being conducted at my home at Panki and Ranchi as well. Thus, I switched off my mobile so that it cannot be traced. But when no permission could be obtained to vote, Hemant started telling that I should go for voting and they would later tackle the matter legally and get bail."
"Considering the condition through which I had passed after the death of my father, I did not want to go to jail. I never have been there. I had to take care of my lonely family as well," he played out.
Devender, who won from the constituency after his father and longtime MlA Bidesh Singh died early this year, also said that his supporters did not allow him to go into police custody "leaving them alone and headless which would have also broken their moral."
He also, on the occasion, rapped his party for unfairly rubbing him. "I have explained my view to Tara Chand Bhagora. My party leaders were aware that the police are after me since the time I won the election. I won despite odds and even then if action is being taken against me it means they want to expel me because I didn't want to go to jail". He, however, has made no attempt to contact PCC chief Sukhdeo Bhagat and said that he was waiting for a formal show cause issued by the Congress to reply formally.