2014 elections: Baba Ramdev campaigns for riot-accused BJP candidates

Muzaffarnagar: Riot-accused BJP candidates Sanjeev Baliyan from Muzaffarnagar and Bharatendu Singh contesting from Bijnore Lok Sabha constituencies on Tuesday got a shot in the arm with Yoga guru Baba Ramdev campaigning for them.

Flanked by both the candidates at a press meet, Ramdev said, the BJP has promised to usher in a corruption-free, developed country, besides recovering the black money stashed away by Indians in Swiss bank accounts.

Baliyan and Singh are out on bail in connection with the Muzaafarnagar riot cases. BJP has fielded another accused Hukum Singh for Kairana LS seat. Two cases each are pending against Hukum Singh and Sanjeev Baliyan, according to affidavits filed during their nominations. After an FIR was filed against Bharatendu Singh during the riots, he was arrested and sent to jail. He was later released on bail.

The communal violence, which had broken out on September 7, last year in Muzaffarnagar and adjoining towns, had claimed 67 lives. It left 85 others injured and rendered 51,000 people homeless.