Zeeshan Siddique Takes Jibe At 'Old Friends' From MVA For Fielding Candidate Against Him In Vandre East

Former Congress leader Zeeshan Siddique has criticised the party after the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) announced a candidate for the Vandre East constituency in Mumbai, a seat he won in the 2019 state elections.

The 34-year-old politician remarked that his "old friends" had selected a candidate for the seat and suggested that "supporting was never in their nature".

Earlier this year, the Congress expelled the 32-year-old leader following accusations of cross-voting during the Maharashtra legislative council election, a charge Siddique has denied.

Zeeshan is the son of Baba Siddiqui, a leader from the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP and a former Maharashtra minister, who was tragically shot dead earlier this month.

"I heard old friends have announced their candidates from Vandre East. Supporting was never in their nature," he stated in a post on X. "Maintain relations with those who give respect, no point in surrounding yourself with a crowd, now the people will decide."

In the 2019 elections, Zeeshan Siddiqui triumphed over the Shiv Sena's Vishwanath Mahadeshwar, a former Mayor of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, to secure the Vandre East seat.

As part of the MVA's seat-sharing agreement, the Vandre East seat has been allocated to Congress ally Shiv Sena (UBT), who has fielded Varun Sardesai, the nephew of party leader Uddhav Thackeray, as their candidate.

Meanwhile, within the BJP-led Mahayuti alliance, the Vandre East seat has been assigned to the NCP's Ajit Pawar faction. Though the NCP has yet to announce its candidate, it is expected that Zeeshan Siddiqui will be fielded, aiming to capitalise on the sympathy following his father's murder.

Baba Siddiqui, aged 66, was shot dead outside Zeeshan's office in Bandra on 12 October. So far, 14 individuals have been arrested, with the police investigating various motives, including a contract killing or business rivalry. Baba Siddiqui had previously served as Congress MLA for Vandre from 1999-2009. After the constituency was restructured, he represented Vandre West from 2009-14. He left the Congress earlier this year and joined the Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP.