The Bahujan Samaj Party on Tuesday informed that it expelled its senior leader and former MLA Imran Masood for alleged anti-party activities and indiscipline. Masood is a prominent face for the BSP in western Uttar Pradesh. According to a party statement cited by news agency PTI, he had been warned several times not to indulge in "anti-party activities and indiscipline" but he did not follow the party's directive and hence has been expelled. Notably, the BSP's action against its leader comes after he praised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
“It was good to have worked with Rahul Gandhi. He can understand the problems of even ordinary party workers,” Masood told media persons on Sunday, according to a report by Hindustan Times.
The remark caused speculations of Masood joining the Congress again.
Reacting to the development, he said he got to know about his dismissal through the media. "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," he added, stressing that he will continue to praise "good people" and has never spoken ill about the Gandhi siblings.
Masood had quit the Congress last year before the Uttar Pradesh Assembly Election to join the Samajwadi Party. He then joined the BSP in October 2022.
He has said he will discuss with his aides to decide on the next step.
An influential Muslim figure from Saharanpur district, Masood did not attend a meeting of the BSP leaders and office-bearers chaired by party chief Mayawati in Lucknow on August 23. A report by Indian Express cited sources as informing that he was not invited to the meeting held last week because he praised Congress leaders.
The BSP in its release stated that when Masood joined the party he was clearly told that he would get a Lok Sabha ticket from Saharanpur only following an assessment of his work.
"In the local body elections, when he pressured for a ticket from the Saharanpur mayor's post for a family member, it was given on the condition that the Saharanpur Lok Sabha ticket would be considered for him only if his family member won the mayor's seat, but the seat was lost," the release stated, as quoted by PTI.
It further claimed that Masood did not work towards adding new members to the BSP.
Imran Masood is the nephew of former Union minister Raheed Masood. He was elected MLA from the Muzaffarabad seat (now Behat seat) in Saharanpur district in the 2007 UP election.
Previously, he has contested the Lok Sabha election on a Congress ticket in 2014 and 2019 from Saharanpur.
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