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Raj Babbar suspended, may join Cong
The actor-turned-MP was suspended from SP's parliamentary wing following his public diatribe against Amar Singh.
Raj Babbar was suspended on Tuesday from the Samajwadi Party's parliamentary wing following his public diatribe against its high-profile general secretary Amar Singh.
Babbar, who had refused to quit the party on his own, welcomed the decision communicated to him by the party leader in the Lok Sabha, Ram Gopal Yadav.
"I am grateful to the Samajwadi Party for suspending me," said the Agra MP.
Party sources indicated that Babbar, a second term MP from Agra, is expected to join the Congress, which is desperately trying to improve its prospects in the state.
Babbar had in a media interview launched a scathing attack against Amar Singh and sought his removal.
He had questioned Amar Singh's utility in the party and accused him of hobnobbing with corporate bigwigs, resulting in the party deviating from its socialist ideological moorings.
Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav come out against Babbar, saying that the actor should have thought about his own contribution to the party before making allegations against a senior leader like Amar Singh.
According to Samajwadi Party leaders, Babbar's outburst was prompted by the Congress, which supports Mulayam Singh Yadav government in Uttar Pradesh but continues to be a political rival.
Babbar's attack came a few days after he reportedly held a secret meeting with Uttar Pradesh Congress president Salman Khurshid at the latter's residence in New Delhi.
Referring to accusations of his hobnobbing with Congress leaders, Babbar said: "I am happy that my name is linked with a secular force. I am not like those who have often been visited by BJP agents."
