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SP Leader Azam Khan Declines Meeting UP Congress Chief In Sitapur Jail; Akhilesh Yadav Questions Intent
Azam Khan (L) and Akhilesh Yadav (R) (Facebook)
Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Azam Khan, incarcerated in Seetapur Jail, Uttar Pradesh, has refused to meet with state Congress president Ajay Rai. Khan clarified that he does not want to meet with any political party leader because he is only permitted to meet with two individuals within 15 days and wishes to give this opportunity to his family members.
Rai wanted to meet Azam Khan and sent a letter to the district magistrate requesting a meeting on 26 October at 1:00 pm. According to the rules, a meeting with Khan is only possible after obtaining permission from him. However, Khan declined to meet him.
Earlier, Azam Khan's son, Mohammad Adib Azam, visited his father in jail on Wednesday. He was accompanied by former legislator Anup Gupta and SP district president Chhatrapal Singh Yadav, Live Hindustan reported.
Azam Khan, along with his wife Tanzeem Fatima and son Abdullah Azam is in jail after receiving a seven-year prison sentence over conviction in fake birth certificate case of Abdullah.
While going to meet Azam Khan, Rai told ANI, "It is basic humanity that we meet them when the entire family is jailed and in crisis today. Now it is unfortunate that we will be prevented from meeting each other. When someone is in pain, it is our duty to stand with them. When he was Minister and I was an MLA from BJP, whenever I went to him with any work, he never denied it. He did all my work and also gave me respect."
The Samajwadi Party has expressed dissatisfaction with Ajay Rai's actions, prompting SP Chief Akhilesh Yadav to question the Congress' intentions.
"Where was the Congress when Azam Khan was being targeted, the leaders of the Congress were, in fact, targeting Azam Khan," Akhilesh Yadav stated.
The Congress and SP have engaged in a verbal spat since Akhilesh Yadav accused the Congress of betraying his party by failing to reach a seat-sharing agreement for the MP Assembly polls.
Election pundits believe that by standing with Azam Khan, the Congress is attempting to woo Muslim voters.
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