BIJNOR: In her poll affidavit, 69-year-old Omvati Devi, Congress candidate from Nagina, has declared that she owns a total of six guns. Out of these, three weapons, including two single barrel guns, are in her name while her husband, a retired IAS officer, owns a carbine and two other firearms.A four-time MLA and one-time MP from Bijnor district, Omvati Devi became a state minister in 2007 during the BSP government. She has served almost all parties, including Congress, BSP, SP and BJP. She was recently in BJP but left it for Congress which has fielded her from Nagina.When asked why she needed so many guns, Devi told TOI, “I have contested 10 elections, including assembly and parliamentary, in my 35 years in politics. Out of these, I have won five polls. My husband and I have no criminal cases but we keep arms for our security. We have political rivals and we are without security at times. That’s when we need to protect ourselves.”Her husband, RK Singh, was a former principal secretary in UP government.Similarly, BJP’s candidate and sitting MP from Bijnor seat, Kunwar Bhartendra Singh, has three licensed arms, including a double-barrel gun, rifle and a pistol, while Congress nominee Naseemuddin Siddiqui has a rifle, a revolver and one double-barrel gun.According to a 2016 study, Uttar Pradesh tops the list of states with active gun licences with a whopping 12.77 lakh people authorised to carry weapons. According to UP Police, 10.76 lakh commoners in the state have a gun compared to just 2.3 lakh police personnel who have a firearm—that is more than five times the figure.

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