“Not decided yet to switch to NCP”: Congress MLA Zeeshan Siddiqui

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], August 20 (ANI): Congress MLA Zeeshan Siddiqui met Maharashtra Deputy CM and NCP chief Ajit Pawar at his residence on Tuesday and said that although his party was ignoring him, he has yet not decided to switch to the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

Siddiqui also took part in the NCP’s ‘Jan Sanman Yatra’ led by Ajit Pawar on Monday.

“Met Ajit Dada today because he is the deputy chief minister of Maharashtra and I had to discuss issues related to my constituency. I have not decided yet to join NCP or any other party because there is still a lot of time for the elections and the people of my constituency and my voters will decide from which party I should contest the elections,” the Congress MLA said.

Siddiqui claimed that the Congress is sidelining him and is not inviting him to party events.

“Congress is sidelining me, and I’m not being invited to any event of the party. Two days back there was an event organised by Varsha Gaikwad in my constituency, and still, I was not informed or invited about the same,” he said.

“I was removed from the Mumbai Youth Congress president post unceremoniously though it is an elected post, so it’s very clear that Congress is sidelining me. Today, there is a meeting of Maha Vikas Aghadi, where they will start their assembly poll campaign. I am an MLA of the Congress party and still, I have not been informed or invited to this event. Mallikarjun Kharge (Congress President) is a very good man, and he has family relations with our family also, he is attending the event today, but I am not invited,” Siddiqui added.

The Congress MLA said that all these things started after his father and former MLA Baba Siddiqui left the Congress and joined the Ajit Pawar-led party.

“This all started with my father leaving Congress and joining NCP a few months back. But there are many instances in Congress itself where father and son are in two different parties like AK Anthony and a few others, but still, I am the only one who is being targeted,” he said.

Zeeshan Siddiqui was removed from the post of Mumbai Youth Congress President in February. His father Baba Siddiqui quit the Congress and joined the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) in February.

Assembly elections in Maharashtra are scheduled for later this year. The Election Commission of India held back on the announcement of the assembly polls scheduled for Jharkhand and Maharashtra.