Patna, Aug 10 (IANS): In a bid to expand its political base in Uttar Pradesh, Mukesh Sahani, the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) Chief, will distribute 50,000 statues of the 'Bandit Queen' turned former Samajwadi Party MP Phoolan Devi to people in the state.

With this gesture Sahani has sent a message to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath that he is not taking a step back from political entry in Uttar Pradesh.

Sahani started his Uttar Pradesh mission by visiting Varanasi on July 25 to install statues of Phoolan Devi but the Yogi Adityanath government did not allow him to step outside the airport. The district administration said the VIP Chief's visit may affect law and order across the 18 divisions he had chosen to install the statues.

"Phoolan Devi fought for women empowerment in the country. She had fought for her pride. We have decided to spread awareness about her ideology in every household. The Uttar Pradesh government had cancelled the programmes to honour Phoolan Devi but her ideology cannot be erased from the minds of people," Sahani said in Patna on Tuesday.

"We have decided to distribute 50,000 idols, five lakh pendants and 10 lakh calendars. We have started a website www.vipparty.in. Any individual can order a statue or a pendant of Phoolan Devi on this website and our party workers will deliver them at their doorstep," the VIP Chief added.

"We have identified 165 assembly constituencies on which our party will contest 2022 Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh," Sahani said.