The party has also formally announced to field Ansari from Ghazipur for the Lok Sabha polls. Ansari who was in the jail in connection with the murder of BJP legislator Krishnanand Rai was released on bail recently.

Sources in the Home Department said Ansari has been given Y category security. Ansari is SP’s third MP who has got a BSP ticket. The party has already selected Shahid Siddiqui for Bijnore while S P Singh Baghel has been given the ticket for the Ferozabad seat.

Another SP parliamentarian Munawar Hasan from Muzaffar Nagar, who died in a road accident, had also shifted his loyalties to BSP. The party has given the ticket to his wife.

Ansari’s brother, Mukhtar Ansari, who is still in the jail in connection with the Krishnanand Rai murder case, represents Mau Assembly seat as an Independent MLA while his third brother, Sibgatullah Ansari, is a SP legislator from Muhammadabad constituency from Ghazipur district.

Mukhtar is, however, likely to be pitted as BSP candidate against senior BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi from Varanasi. According to sources, Sibgatullah was also present at the dais when BSP zonal coordinator Tribhuwan Dutta announced Afzal’s name as the party candidate for the Ghazipur seat.

Initially, the party had selected Girdhari Yadav for the Ghazipur seat. Yadav was also present in the rally. Beside him, all three BSP legislators from Ghazipur — Kalicharan Rajbhar, Rajkumar Gautam and Pahupati Nath Rai — welcomed Afzal into the party.

On being contacted, Afzal said Sibgatullah has not resigned from the SP, but would remain with him in the election. “Bhai hain toh saath rahenge hee (As he is my brother, we will stay together),” said Afzal.