Ramesh Upadhyay, an accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, has joined the Janata Dal (United) in Uttar Pradesh, reported the Indian Express. The report stated that Upadhyay has been appointed as the convenor of the party’s ex-servicemen cell. His appointment letter was issued by UP JD(U) chief Anoop Singh Patel on 12 October.
A retired army major, Ramesh Upadhyay was arrested by the Maharashtra ATS for his alleged role in the 2008 bomb blast case along with other accused including Sadhvi Pragya and Lt Col Prasad Shrikant Purohit.
Upadhyay, a resident of Pune, had contested the 2019 Lok Sabha elections from his native constituency Ballia in UP as an Independent candidate. The Express report stated that earlier in 2012 he had contested the UP Assembly elections from Bairia in Ballia district on a Hindu Mahasabha ticket.
Speaking to Indian Express, Upadhyay said that members of the JD(U) approached him and while he has agreed to work for the party, he is not looking to contest elections. When asked about the terror charges, he replied, “I am innocent. I am a nationalist and a patriotic and secular person. I was falsely implicated in the Malegaon bomb blast case.”
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