In a significant development in Uttar Pradesh politics, senior leader Naseemuddin Siddiqui joined the Samajwadi Party (SP) on Sunday after recently resigning from the primary membership of the Congress. He was inducted into the party in the presence of SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, along with hundreds of his supporters.
Welcoming him into the party, Akhilesh said Siddiqui’s entry would strengthen the Samajwadi Party ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. Several other Congress leaders also joined the SP along with him.
With the Assembly elections due next year, political realignments have begun in the state. Siddiqui, a former minister in the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) government and until recently a Congress general secretary, had been at the centre of speculation over his political future. There were reports that he might form his own party, join the Azad Samaj Party, or move to Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM. However, he ended the speculation by formally joining the Samajwadi Party on Sunday.
Siddiqui had joined the Congress from the BSP on February 4, 2018. During his tenure in the party, he was fielded as a candidate in both Assembly and Lok Sabha elections and was given important organisational responsibilities. However, he recently resigned, alleging that despite being a grassroots worker, he was not given sufficient opportunities to work at the ground level within the party. Congress leaders, on the other hand, have maintained that he was given full freedom to function within the organisation.
A resident of Seyondha village in Banda district, Siddiqui began his political career in 1988 by contesting the election for the post of Banda Municipal Council president, though he lost his debut contest. He later joined the BSP and, in 1991, won the MLA election from the Banda Sadar seat, becoming the first Muslim legislator from the constituency and a close confidant of BSP chief Mayawati.
During the BSP government, Siddiqui held several key positions. He served as a Cabinet minister during different tenures, including from March to September 1997, from May 2002 to August 2003, and from May 2007 to March 2012, when he handled as many as 18 departments. He was also a member of the Legislative Council for about two decades.
His wife, Husna Siddiqui, served as an MLC for five years, while his son, Afzal Siddiqui, contested the Fatehpur Lok Sabha seat in 2014.
After facing repeated electoral defeats as a Congress candidate, Siddiqui has now begun a new political innings with the Samajwadi Party as it prepares for the 2027 Assembly elections.
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