NEW DELHI: AIMIM national spokesperson Syed Asim Waqar joined the Congress on Wednesday and launched a sharp attack on his former party, accusing the Asaduddin Owaisi-led outfit of opposing those fighting the BJP while merely paying lip service to the goal of defeating the ruling party.Waqar joined the Congress in the presence of AICC in-charge for Uttar Pradesh Rajendra Pal Gautam, UP Congress chief Ajay Rai and AICC Minority Department chairman Imran Pratapgarhi at the party headquarters at 24 Akbar Road, news agency PTI reported.Gautam welcomed Waqar into the party and said the Congress-led movement under Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi was focused on issues concerning education, employment, students, women and marginalised sections.“Under the leadership of the Leader of the Opposition, Shri Rahul Gandhi, a movement is underway across the country on issues concerning education, employment, students, women, and marginalised sections,” Gautam said at a press conference after Waqar was inducted into the party.“Rahul Gandhi ji is firmly raising the voice of every section and continuously cautioning the government on every front. Inspired by this, senior leaders from various parties are joining the Congress Party and strengthening the hands of Shri Mallikarjun Kharge and Shri Rahul Gandhi,” he said.
Waqar targets AIMIM, says party fights Opposition instead of BJP
Explaining his decision to leave AIMIM, Waqar said those seeking to remove the BJP should not be fighting other opposition parties.“But I felt being in the AIMIM for so many years that we pay lip service by stating that the BJP must be removed but on the ground we don’t fight the BJP, we fight the Congress, the SP, we are fighting every other person who wants to remove the BJP,” Waqar said.He said this approach ultimately benefits the BJP and prompted him to switch sides.“So, I felt that if we keep fighting the opposition and do not allow it to blossom, then who are we helping the BJP. I have decided that if we are true nationalists and want to remove the BJP honestly then our objective should be to fight the BJP. If we are fighting the enemies of the BJP then we are friends of the BJP,” he said.Waqar said he now believed the Congress was the principal force taking on the BJP nationally.“In reality if someone is fighting the BJP across the country it is Congress, Rahul Gandhi and his team,” he asserted.
Asim Waqar’s Congress switch comes ahead of UP polls
Waqar had been a prominent voice of the AIMIM in Uttar Pradesh and was considered close to party chief Asaduddin Owaisi.His move to the Congress is being viewed by political observers as a development that could affect Owaisi’s efforts to expand the AIMIM’s electoral footprint in Uttar Pradesh.Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh are scheduled to be held early next year, with the ruling BJP expected to face a likely joint challenge from the Samajwadi Party and Congress.(With agency inputs)
