Sidelined,Rashid Masood may quit SP

SP sources confirmed Masood had met SP president Mulayam Singh Yadav in New Delhi last week and discussed his problems in the party. “He is angry with the SP leadership for selecting one Sarfaraj Khan as the party candidate from the Saharanpur (rural) Assembly seat,” a source in the SP said.

Sarfaraj is close to Azam Khan whose return to the SP has resulted in sudden reduction of Rashid Masood’s clout in the party.

When contacted,Masood confirmed his latest meeting with Mulayam Singh in New Delhi but refused to divulge details. “There are certain issues I discussed with Mulayam. I won’t tell you those issues,” he told The Indian Express.

Masood,however,admitted he is unhappy with the manner in which the SP has selected candidates for different Assembly seats in Western UP.

“Dhampur is one Assembly seat in Bijnore where Muslim voters are in considerable numbers. Yet my party has selected one Moolchand as its candidate,” he said. According to him,the Samajwadi Party does not not care for its political interest that can enable it to form the next government.

Asked about his future plans,he said he wants to solve his problems at the party level. “If the party fails to hear my pleas,I will come out in public to tell voters about my grievances against the party,” Masood said.

He said he has a wish to die as a member of Mulayam Singh’s Samajwadi party. “Lekin Ab Lag Nahin Raha (but it does not seem so),” he remarked.

He said he can’t tolerate damage to his prestige in politics. “I do politics for respect. If politics damages my respect,I can’t remain a mute spectator,” he said in response to a question.

Sources in the SP said the party’s state unit president Akhilesh Yadav has called Rashid Masood’s nephew Imran Masood,who is SP MLA from Nakud seat,to hold talks with him in Lucknow on Monday. “Azam Saheb has virtually hijacked the SP,” Imran said while confirming his proposed meeting with Akhilesh.

Imran is considered to be Masood’s political heir in Saharanpur. The party has already cleared Imran’s ticket for contesting from the Nakud seat. Reports from Saharanpur said Imran plans to hold meetings with Masood’s supporters in all the seven Assembly seats in the district. “His plan depends on the success of his meeting with Akhilesh. Leader of opposition in the state Assembly Shivpal Singh Yadav would be present at the meeting,” the source added.

The first setback for the Masood camp came when SP cleared the name of one Mohammed Umar as its candidate from Behat seat in Saharanpur. Masood had then openly claimed that the first list of party candidates was not cleared by the SP’s Parliamentary Board,of which he is a member.