In a clear sign of dissidence in Samajwadi Party after its disastrous poll performance in the Lok Sabha elections, newly-elected party MP from Rampur, Mohammad Azam Khan, offered to resign.
“I am thinking of resigning from Lok Sabha and contesting the 2022 Assembly poll,”’ Azam Khan said in Rampur.
He is said to be incensed at the indifferent attitude of the party brass over targeting of Maulana Jauhar University by the Yogi Adityanath government.
Though the resentment expressed by Azam Khan is couched in usual political rhetoric of public welfare and their problems, his target is SP chief Akhilesh Yadav.
“There are no doctors or health facilities in my constituency. We are running a hospital but there can be attempts to dismantle it. Barrage should be constructed, its construction is pending. I am thinking of quitting Parliament and contesting the Assembly poll in 2022,” he said.
The SP leader said that the welfare of the people in his constituency was of prime importance and he was willing to let go of any position for this.
A few weeks before the Lok Sabha polls, Urdu Gate on the road leading to Jauhar University was demolished by Rampur district administration. An FIR was also lodged last week against Azam Khan for encroachment on government land where the private varsity owned by SP leader was constructed. The FIR is being understood to be behind Khan’s recent outburst.
Denying the charges in the FIR, Azam Khan said, “Whatever happened is before everyone. To remove me from the state, all efforts have been made. There was also an attempt to kill me. My gun licence was cancelled and a conspiracy was hatched to kill me in an encounter.
“Newspapers have written that among all winning MPs, I am the biggest criminal MP due to the maximum number of cases against me.” Azam Khan.
On Monday, Azam Khan, a seven-time MLA from Rampur, submitted his resignation from the membership of UP Assembly. Khan defeated Bharatiya Janata Party’s Jaya Prada from Rampur Lok Sabha constituency in the recent election.