Congress' Nirupam says will reveal plan on Apr 4 as party gears up for his likely expulsion

Nirupam's name was also part of the Congress' star campaigners for the Lok Sabha Elections.

Congress is likely to expel senior leader Sanjay Nirupam from the party ahead of the 18th Lok Sabha Elections, following his controversial remarks targeted at Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies after being denied a ticket from the Mumbai North West seat.

On April 3 evening, following Patole's statements to the media about a likely enquiry and expulsion, Nirupam took to microblogging site X announcing he will take a decision within the next 24 hours.

कॉंग्रेस पार्टी मेरे लिए ज़्यादा ऊर्जा और स्टेशनरी नष्ट ना करे।
बल्कि अपनी बची-ख़ुची ऊर्जा और स्टेशनरी का इस्तेमाल करे,पार्टी को बचाने के लिए करे।
वैसे भी पार्टी भीषण आर्थिक संकट के दौर से गुजर रही है।
मैंने जो एक हफ़्ते की अवधि दी थी,वह आज पूरी हो गई है।
कल मैं खुद फ़ैसला ले…

— Sanjay Nirupam (@sanjaynirupam) April 3, 2024

Nirupam's comments came shortly after Maharashtra Congress President Nana Patole, said, "His name appeared among the star campaigners, but it has been cancelled. Considering the nature of his statements, appropriate action will be taken within a day or two", in an interaction with the press, reported ANI.

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In addition to the tensions over seat allocations within the MVA, there were reports of Nirupam aspiring to contest from Mumbai North West, a seat allocated to the Shiv Sena by the alliance.

Also Read | Why Prakash Ambedkar’s decision to go solo may dampen MVA prospects in Maharashtra

Earlier last week, Nirupam had criticised his party's leadership for allowing the Sena (UBT) to secure the majority of Lok Sabha seats in Mumbai, stating that "all options were open" to him. The former Mumbai Congress chief also took aim at the candidate nominated by Shiv Sena for Mumbai North West, Amol Kirtikar, who is the son of MP Gajanan Kirtikar.

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Maharashtra holds considerable political significance, contributing 48 members to the lower House, the second-highest representation among all states.

The forthcoming Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra will unfold across five phases, with voting scheduled from April 19 to May 20. The results are slated to be announced on June 4.