Rampur (Uttar Pradesh),  The name Akash Saxena may not ring a bell, but, today, it is a name that has virtually demolished one of the tallest political leaders of Uttar Pradesh.

Akash Saxena, 46, is the son of former BJP MP Shiv Bahadur Saxena and a political aspirant himself.

He is the man who lodged a complaint of hate speech against Azam Khan and the move not only got Khan convicted and sentenced to three years in jail but has also cost him the membership of the state Assembly.

Earlier, Akash Saxena had complained against Azam Khan's son Abdullah Azam in a fake age certificate case and Abdullah Azam had also faced disqualification from the state Assembly in 2020.

Besides, Akash Saxena is also the main complainant in more than 43 cases of the total 104 cases lodged against Azam Khan in the past three years.

While Akash has succeeded in pinning down his rival in legal cases, he failed to cut much ice with the voters in the recent Assembly elections when he contested against Azam Khan from Rampur. He lost by 55,000 votes and Azam Khan won the seat.

While Akash Saxena refused to talk about his battle with Azam Khan, people in Rampur claim that Saxena is merely a pawn in the hands of the BJP which is settling scores with Azam Khan.

"The level of hostility in this battle is something which we have never seen before in Rampur. Shiv Bahadur Saxena and Azam khan were also political rivals but they did not get personal in their battles. If Akash is going overboard, it is obvious that there is some power which is pushing him on," said K.K. Singh, a senior advocate.

He said that it is wrong to believe that Akash Saxena's so-called crusade has the support of the people of Rampur.

"If that was the case, then Saxena would have won the recent Assembly elections because Azam Khan was in jail and there was no one to terrorise the people, as he claims. Azam Khan may have done some wrong but he has also worked for the people and Rampur knows it. He and his son would not have won elections in these adverse times if the people had not supported him," said Mashoor Khan, an Azam supporter.