Two MLA joins BSP

Lucknow, May 23 (UNI) Two members of the Uttar Pradesh assembly, Nawab Qazim Ali (Samajwadi Party) and Ram Sevek Singh Patel of (Bharatiya Janshakti Party) today joined the ruling Bahujan Samaj Party.

While the SP MLA has resigned from the membership of the state assembly, the other merged the Bharatiya Janshakti Party with the BSP.

Senior BSP leaders and state ministers Nasimuddin Siddiqui and Lalji Verma were present at the occasion.

Nawab Qazim Ali, SP MLA from Suartanda constitutuency in Rampur district, was one of the 13 MLA disqualified by the Supreme Court in January last for defecting to SP from BSP along with 24 others to pave way for the formation of the Mulayam Singh Yadav government in August 2003.

In 2002 elections, Ali was elected on a Congress ticket but later switched over to BSP and then to SP.

On the other hand Mr Patel is the lone Bharatiya Janshakti Party MLA in the assembly and hence he has merged his party with the BSP.

Talking to mediaperson, Mr Ali and Mr Patel said that they were feeling honoured to be attached with the BSP.

Mr Ali said his resignation from the assembly membership had been accepted by the Speaker and he had sent his resignation letter from the primary membership of the SP.

He also criticised SP leader Mohammad Azam Khan for hobnobbing with the BJP in Rampur during the just concluded assembly elections.

Welcoming both the leaders in the party fold, Mr Siddiqui and Mr Verma said that the two legislators had joined BSP attracted by its ideology.

With this, the strength of the BSP goes up to 207 members in the 202 member house while SP's has been reduced to 96.

Meanwhile, the third expansion of the eleven day old Mayawati government is expected this evening.

UNI