Shrikant Tyagi, who was arrested on Tuesday for assaulting a woman in Noida on August 5, possessed an MLA car sticker, which he claimed was given to him by Samajwadi Party leader Swami Prasad Maurya, PTI reported.

Tyagi identifies himself as a leader of the BJP – a party of which Maurya was an MLA before the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections in February 2022. Currently, Maurya serves as a member of the Legislative Council.

On Tuesday, Maurya denied having given the MLA sticker, and said he had not met Tyagi for the last four years, The Indian Express reported.

BJP has also dissociated itself from Tyagi. BJP Noida Mahanagar chief Manoj Gupta described Tyagi as an imposter and that he had switched to Samajwadi Party.

On Tuesday, Police Commissioner Alok Singh said they have impounded five cars from Tyagi, one of which had the MLA sticker, The Indian Express reported.

“Tyagi’s driver also painted a UP government symbol on his car on his instructions,” Singh said. “We will be taking action against the accused under the Gangster Act.”

Police also alleged that Tyagi would also use his uncle’s licensed pistol to instil fear in public.

Tyagi was sent to 14-day judicial custody on Tuesday after he was caught in Meerut in the afternoon with three of his associates. He had been absconding since last week. The police had announced a reward of Rs 25,000 for those who give leads on his whereabouts.

Tyagi’s case has been listed for hearing on Wednesday.