Uttar Pradesh Congress leader Imran Masood likely to join Samajwadi Party ahead of assembly polls

Imran Masood (File Picture)

In what could be another setback for the Congress party, senior party leader from western Uttar Pradesh Imran Masood will likely switch to the Samajwadi Party (SP) a month ahead of assembly polls.

The speculation about the move by the All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary had been rife since September last year when he praised the SP terming it as the main contender for the Uttar Pradesh elections.

READ: Assembly elections 2022 | UP to vote in 7 phases; Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa in single phase; counting on March 10

Masood said on January 9 that the current political circumstances indicate that there is a direct fight between Bharatiya Janata Party and SP in Uttar Pradesh.

"I will hold a meeting with my supporters tomorrow (January 11) and then seek time from Akhilesh ji (Akhilesh Yadav)," Masood told news agency ANI.

The Election Commission (EC) of India on January 8 announced the legislative assembly election schedule for five states – Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Manipur.

Also, read: MC Election Update: Congress declares 2nd list of candidates for Goa polls

Among the five states going to polls in February-March, Uttar Pradesh is considered to be the bell-wether state, as its outcome may determine the voter sentiment ahead of the 2024 general elections. Uttar Pradesh sends 80 MPs to the Lok Sabha – the most of any states across the country.

The ruling BJP faces a tough challenge from the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh. In the last assembly polls, the BJP had secured a win with a three-fourths majority, with firebrand leader Yogi Adityanath being later announced as the chief minister.

The seven polling phases for 403 assembly seats of Uttar Pradesh will be held on February 10, February 14, February 20, February 23, February 27, March 3 and March 7. The counting of votes will be held on March 10.

Also, read : Uttar Pradesh Assembly Elections 2022 from February 10 to March 7. Things to know about high-stakes polls

Masood won the 2007 assembly elections as an independent candidate from Muzaffarabad assembly seat in Saharanpur. In 2012, he contested on a Congress ticket from Nakur seat but lost. He joined the SP in 2013. In 2014, he joined the Congress again and contested the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls from Saharanpur. But he lost both.

Masood is said to have a sizeable support in his area, especially from the Muslim community. In 2014, he was jailed for an alleged hate speech made during an election campaign where he purportedly threatened to "chop Narendra Modi to pieces”.

Also, read: Resignation spree continues in Congress: Here is a list of leaders who quit the party in recent months

Masood’s likely exit will be the latest in a series of defections in the Congress party in the recent past. Before him, senior leaders including Jitin Prasada and Raebareli (Sadar) MLA Aditi Singh switched over to BJP. In October last year, another close aide of Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Harendra Malik, along with his son and state vice-president and former MLA Pankaj Malik, had resigned from the Congress.