Mohammad Shahabuddin

Mohammad Shahabuddin (born 10 May 1967) is a criminal turned politician. He was elected four times as a Member of Parliament from Siwan, Bihar, with the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party of Lalu Prasad Yadav, and 2-times as MLA, to the Bihar Vidhan Sabha (Legislative Assembly). Being convicted in many criminal cases, he was debarred from contesting the 2009 general elections.

Md Shahabuddin was elected for four successive terms to the Indian Parliament (Lok Sabha) between 1996 and 2008. In the 2009 general elections, the RJD party had put up his wife Hena Shahab from Siwan constituency in Bihar, but his long-time opponent Om Prakash Yadav defeated her by 63,000 votes (9%).

In 2004, Shahabuddin's opponents were intimidated against campaigning even though he was in prison during the elections. Immediately after the elections, which he won by a margin of 100,000 votes (16%), nine party workers of the nearest candidate Om Prakash Yadav of Janata Dal (United), were found murdered, allegedly for daring to put up a credible fight.

He has been winning Lok Sabha elections from Siwan since 1996, prior to which he was elected twice to the Bihar Legislative Assembly (1990 and 1995). Few opponents dare campaign publicly for fear; in addition, he is widely believed to have rigged many polling stations in the past.

In May 2007, Shahabuddin was found guilty in a case of "abducting with intent to murder", and he was sentenced to life imprisonment. This may mean that he would be unable to contest any subsequent elections.

Shahabuddin came into the political limelight while at college in the 1980s; he came to be known for his daredevil fighting and his opposition to the growing reach of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI-ML) and the Bharatiya Janata Party.

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