Ex-Saharanpur MLA Masood back in SP

Imran is a nephew of Congress MP and former Union minister Rasheed Masood,

The ruling SP in Uttar Pradesh got a much-needed shot in the arm Sunday when former Saharanpur MLA Imran Masood,who had left SP to join Congress ahead of last years Assembly elections,returned to the party.

Imran is a nephew of Congress MP and former Union minister Rasheed Masood,and the family carries a lot of clout in western UP,which recently witnessed communal clashes.

Masoods homecoming will strengthen the party in Saharanpur,Muzaffarnagar,Haridwar and western UP, PWD minister Shivpal Singh Yadav said. Shivpal termed the violence in Muzaffarnagar as an unfortunate accident and said there were neither any communal clashes nor any riots in the area. Some people from BJP and VHP are conspiring to give the incident the shape of communal riots, he said.

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To a query on Parliamentary Affairs Minister Azam Khans absence from the all-party meeting before the Assembly session Sunday,Shivpal said Khan will attend the session beginning Monday.

Meanwhile,Masood,said he has returned to SP to bolster its fight against communal forces. The communal forces have once again become active in Muzaffarnagar, he said,blaming RSS,BJP,Narendra Modi and his aide Amit Shah for the violence. Masood said several other local leaders of Saharanpur will also join SP in October in a rally that will be addressed by Mulayam Singh Yadav. Refusing to comment on his uncles stand on remaining with Congress,Masood said his and Rasheed Masoods politics are different.

CPM delegation visits riot victims homes,hospitals

New Delhi: A CPM delegation comprising MP Saidul Haque and central committee member Subhashini Ali visited Muzaffarnagar Saturday. They visited district hospitals and camps as well as homes of some of the victims,including Rajendra Varma,a correspondent of IBN7 who was killed on September 7. ENS