Giriraj Singh shares stage with Muzaffarpur shelter home case accused Manju Verma

Days after being fielded from the Begusarai seat for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Union Minister Giriraj Singh has landed himself in a controversy after he was seen sharing stage with former Bihar minister Manju Verma, who is out on bail in Muzaffarpur shelter home rape case.

Giriraj was addressing NDA leaders and party workers on Saturday while sharing the stage with Verma, who was arrested under Arms Act in connection with Muzaffarpur shelter home rape case.

Verma had stepped down as the minister for social welfare in August, following reports that her husband, Chandrashekhar Verma, had close links with Brajesh Thakur, the prime accused in the Muzaffarpur shelter home scandal. Over 30 girls were allegedly raped at the shelter home.

The Arms Act case was lodged against Verma following recovery of a huge quantity of ammunition from her residence here during a CBI raid.

On the other hand, Giriraj Singh was earlier unhappy with the party leadership over being asked to contest from a Lok Sabha seat other than the one he held but fell in line after a meeting with party chief Amit Shah.

While speaking at the event, the Union Minister indirectly took a jibe at his rival Kanhaiya Kumar who is a CPI candidate from Begusarai constituency.

Giriraj said that his fight is against "anti-nationals". "I am sure that people of Begusarai will not only defeat them but also give them a befitting reply," he added.