Mumbai, February 22: The central leadership of the Congress has appointed local youth activist Akhilesh Yadav as president of the Mumbai unit of the Youth Congress and Sufiyan Haider as the working president. Yadav replaces Zeeshan Siddique, MLA, who was summarily sacked from the party. The party leadership had information that Zeeshan, is likely to defect to the NCP (Ajit Pawar) and hence removed him. His father and ex-MLA from Bandra Baba Siddique had recently defected from the Congress to the NCP (Ajit Pawar).
Zeeshan alleged on Thursday that there is no value for Muslims in the Congress. He said he will talk to his supporters and search options in other political parties. He said Muslims were targeted in the Congress and there was no secularism in the party anymore. He said there was communalism in the Youth Congress.
Zeeshan Siddiqui Slams Uddhav Thackeray, Rahul Gandhi:
Zeeshan alleged said during the MVA government helmed by Uddhav Thackeray several issues pertaining to his constituency, Bandra (E), remained unresolved. He said several Muslim activists in the Congress were feeling suffocated. He also targeted Mr Thackeray and accused him of promoting a communal agenda. "Mr Thackeray openly used to say that Babri masjid was demolished by Shiv Sainiks and the Congress was in alliance with him," he observed.
He also said those in the inner circle of Rahul Gandhi were out to destroy the Congress. Party president Mallikarjun Kharge's hands were tied and there is little he could do about it. The Congress wants the votes of Muslims but their leaders have problem with Muslims. Congress is claiming to be secular but in reality it is not. Its secularism is fake." Interestingly, Zeeshan praised NCP leader Ajit Pawar.
