Azam aide joins BJP ahead of poll

LUCKNOW: Samajwadi Party (SP) veteran Azam Khan’s trusted aide Fasahat Ali Khan ‘Shanu’ joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday about a fortnight before the Rampur (Sadar) assembly bypoll scheduled for December 5.

In the past, Fasahat Ali Khan had written a letter to the President with his own blood, complaining of alleged discrimination that Azam Khan had been subjected to by the BJP government.

Fasahat Ali Khan, who had also been the media-contact of Azam Khan in Rampur, joined the BJP in the presence of state party chief Bhupendra Chaudhary, who was in Rampur (Sadar) assembly constituency for a booth-level public meeting organised at Rampur’s Sawariya Park located on Shahbad road on Monday.

“I think under BJP rule, all sections of society have benefitted and that’s why I, along with various other Muslims, have decided to back the BJP this time,” said Shanu. The Rampur campaign also included BJP veterans, including finance minister Suresh Khanna and minorities affairs minister Dharampal Singh.

Congress leader in Rampur Nawab Kazim Ali Khan, a fivetime lawmaker, too, has declared support for the BJP.

The assembly bypoll was caused after Azam Khan was convicted in a 2019 hate speech case and subsequently lost his membership of the state assembly. Barring a stray loss in 1996, Azam Khan has won the Rampur seat 10 times since 1977.

CONG LEADER IN RAMPUR NAWAB KAZIM ALI KHAN, A FIVE-TIME LAWMAKER, TOO, HAS DECLARED SUPPORT FOR BJP.