Staying with SP, implies Azam
waiting newspersons before he left for Rampur. Both Azam and Abdullah looked a bit relaxed and smiled as Azam replied to questions.
When asked if he was joining Shivpal Yadav (SP MLA and chief of Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party-Lohia), Azam said: “Our ship is strong. I have never looked towards any boat. I am not sure if there is any suitable boat at all.” Observers interpreted that by mentioning ‘ship’, Azam meant the Samajwadi Party and the boat as Shivpal or any other party.
When asked if he was upset with SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, he said: “There is no reason to be upset with him. I am not upset with anyone”.
Azam was the founder member of the Samajwadi Party when Mulayam formed it. Earlier, Azam had once been out of the party for almost a year. The SP expelled him in May 2009 for six years. The expulsion was revoked in December 2010 and he re-joined the party. During the expulsion period, he did not ally with or join any other party.
On the first day of the budget session, Azam Khan and his son Abdullah took oath as members of the assembly after which Azam left, citing health reasons. However, his son Abdullah attended the session on both days.
Earlier on Monday, Azam Khan met Pragatisheel Samajwadi Party (Lohia) chief Shivpal Yadav at his residence. The meeting between the two lasted for about an hour but neither Shivpal nor Azam divulged any details.
Responding to a question on the meeting with Shivpal, Azam said: “Will be meeting him (Shivpal) more. Should anyone have a problem with this? All (politicians) meet, interact, sit together and have tea. Should I be any different?”
Azam Khan was recently released from jail after almost 27 months, after getting interim bail from the Supreme Court. Since early last month, there had been speculations in political circles in UP that he was unhappy with the Samajwadi Party and its chief Akhilesh Yadav.