Such is the nature of his profession, both as a performing artist and a politician, that Bhojpuri star singer and politician Pawan Singh never really goes out of the newcycle. The singer, best known for chartbuster Bhojpuri songs such as Jab Lagawelu Tu Lipistic and Goriya Chaal Tohar Matwali, has been in constant limelight for all the wrong reasons.
For now, it's Pawan Singh's family matter clubbed with an undercurrent of political aspiration that is dominating the headlines for the past few weeks.
Pawan Singh, who recently returned to the BJP after a year-and-a-half in the run-up to the Bihar Assembly Polls, and his second wife, Jyoti Singh are at loggerheads. On Monday, the same day the Election Commission announced the dates of polls in the state, Jyoti Singh levelled accusations of cheating and harassment against the Bhojpuri icon.
Theirs has been a tug-of-war marriage but in the limelight. Interestingly, the couple has been embroiled in a divorce case since 2022.
Jyoti Singh's Allegations Against Pawan Singh
On Monday, Jyoti Singh, the second wife of Bhojpuri actor Pawan Singh, broke down outside his Lucknow residence claiming he had filed an FIR against her. In the past, Jyoti Singh has accused her husband of neglect and being incommunicado.
She went on live on Instagram and said, "This Pawan Singh will serve the society who is calling the police to get his wife out. When there was an election, he called me and used my name".
Jyoti Singh also accused Pawan Singh, who is currently seen in the reality web series Rise And Fall, of harassment and cheating.
"He then went to the hotel with another girl. Everyone used to ask why I came to my house, not why Pawan ji went to the hotel with a girl in front of us. Being the wife, I couldn't bear to see my husband be with another girl, so I left. You will know when you will be with your sister and daughter," she said in the video.
Pawan Singh's Reply To Jyoti Singh's Allegations
Pawan Singh, who was dropped like a hot potato by the BJP last year over his controversial image, has made a comeback to the party ahead of the Bihar Polls, starting November 6.
He earlier met senior BJP leaders, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah and party president JP Nadda, in Delhi. According to reports, the party may field him from the Arrah Assembly seat, with him expected to visit the constituency soon.
After his wife's Instagram Live video went viral, Pawan Singh shared a lengthy note in Hindi where he counter accused her of using him for political mileage.
"I know only one thing in my life that the public is God for me. Will I hurt the sentiments of all of you, because of whom I have reached this far? Jyoti Singh ji. Is it not true that when you came to my society yesterday morning, I respectfully invited you to my house and we talked for about 1:30 hours?" he asked.
According to the singer, Jyoti Singh was pressuring him to let her contest the election. "Your only insistence is to get me to contest the elections somehow, which is beyond my capacity.
"A misconception was spread in the society that I called the police, whereas the truth is that the police were present there since morning so that whatever happens, happens in their presence, and nothing untoward happens anywhere by the people who came with you or by anyone else," he added in his post.
Jyoti Singh's Rebuttal To Pawan Singh's Post
After his reply via Instagram started picking up steam, Jyoti Singh too shared another post in her defence, inviting her husband for a joint media appearance.
On early Tuesday morning, she wrote, "Even our god-like janta deserves to know what is true and what is false. Maybe you are right, maybe I am right, let us both appear in front of the media together. Let us both sit together because now the matter has gone beyond these four walls. I know I can prove what I'm saying. If you can prove your point too, then come in front of our god-like janta and talk openly."
She also addressed Pawan Singh's claims of pressuring him to let her contest the election.
"I won't contest elections if you accept me as your wife for life... I don't believe in using loved ones for vested interests," wrote Jyoti Singh, signing off as "your wife".
Pawan Singh And Jyoti Singh: A History
Pawan Singh and Jyoti Singh married in 2018. This is Pawan Singh's second marriage. His first wife Neelam died by suicide in 2015, soon after they got married.
In August, Pawan Singh courted controversy after a video of him inappropriately touching his co-star Anjali Raghav's waist during a public event in Lucknow went viral on social media.
Amid the backlash, Jyoti Singh shared a post on Instagram where she didn't address the controversy but went on to claim that Pawan Singh has not responded to her calls and messages for months.
"I have been trying to talk to you for several months about some family and political issues... What grave offence have I committed that I am being punished like this? If I am not worthy of you, you could have just left me," she, in the now-deleted post, wrote.
Jyoti Singh, who is a politician according to her Instagram bio, claimed that Pawan Singh gave her "false hope during the Lok Sabha elections".
Calling her message a "final plea" after seven years of struggle, Jyoti Singh urged Pawan Singh to talk to her and acknowledge her pain.
"So this is my final plea to you at the end of seven years of struggle. Nowadays, I have begun to hate my life. Come and talk to me, respond to my calls and messages, try to understand my pain for once," she concluded.
In 2022, Jyoti Singh accused Pawan Singh of causing mental harassment, forcing her to go for an abortion and instigating to take the extreme step of suicide.
With Jyoti Singh's request of appearing together in public to solve a very personal matter ahead of the Bihar Assembly Polls, the ball is now in Pawan Singh's court.
Also Read | Pawan Singh's Wife Alleges Actor Cheated On Her: 'He Went To A Hotel With Another Girl'
