india

Updated: Apr 30, 2017 16:54 IST

Murder accused MLA Amanmani Tripathi shared stage with Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and sought blessings by touching his feet at an event in Gorakhpur on Saturday.

Tripathi (35), an independent MLA from Nautanwa assembly constituency in neighbouring Maharajganj district, is facing charges of murdering his wife Sara.

The MLA handed over a few papers to Adityanath during his brief interaction.

Senior BJP MLA from Campiyarganj Fateh Bahadur Singh, who was overseeing preparations of the programme, said he came to know later that Tripathi had touched the feet of the chief minister.

Even BJP party workers were surprised to see the MLA sharing stage with Adityanath, who has repeatedly said that law and order is his top priority.

BJP’s Gorakhpur unit spokesperson Satyendra Sinha, however, said, “Any public representative can greet the chief minister and touch his feet. There is nothing wrong with it.”

Amanmani’s father Amarmani Tripathi has been elected as an MLA from Nautanwa four times and was a minister in the SP government headed by Mulayam Singh Yadav. He is currently serving a life sentence in the Madhumita Shukla murder case.