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Petty reason, says Imran Masood on BSP expelling him after Rahul Gandhi praise
BSP Saharanpur district unit president Janeshwar Prasad said the party leadership had warned Imran Masood in the past but there was no change
LUCKNOW: Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) expelled former legislator Imran Masood from the party on Tuesday, days after the firebrand politician praised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
Masood, an influential Muslim leader from Saharanpur district in western Uttar Pradesh, on Sunday told reporters that it was good to have worked with Rahul Gandhi. “He can understand the problems of even ordinary party workers,” Masood said, a remark that was interpreted to signal that he may switch back to the Congress before the 2024 national elections.
Masood said if he really thrown out of the party because of his remarks on Sunday, it was a “petty reason”. “I don’t know why I was expelled. If I have been expelled because I praised Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi, then that is a petty reason,” Masood said, according to news agency PTI.
BSP Saharanpur district unit president Janeshwar Prasad said the party ordered a probe after allegations emerged about Masood indulging in indiscipline and anti-party activities. “Masood was expelled on the basis of the report. The party leadership had earlier warned him but there was no change in his working style,” Prasad said.
In a statement, Prasad said Imran Masood had been inactive during the party’s membership drive in western Uttar Pradesh. Masood, he added, had been putting pressure on the party to declare him the Lok Sabha candidate from Saharanpur despite his wife Saima Masood’s defeat in the mayoral election in the Saharanpur municipal corporation. The party had made it clear to Masood that if his wife lost the mayor’s election, he shouldn’t expect the Lok Sabha ticket.
Asked about his statement, Masood on Monday told HT: “I committed a mistake by deserting the Congress before the 2022 assembly elections. Under pressure from my supporters, I left the Congress. Even after leaving the Congress. I have a good relationship with Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Vadra. I respect both the leaders.”
Before the 2022 assembly elections, Masood defected from the Congress to the Samajwadi Party while his brother Noman Masood joined the BSP. Imran Masood joined the BSP after the 2022 assembly elections.
