MUMBAI: A few months before the crucial assembly polls, MPCC president Nana Patole on Friday expelled party MLAs Jitesh Antapurkar and Zeeshan Siddique for anti-party activities, particularly cross-voting during the legislative council polls. Earlier, the same day, Antapurkar joined the BJP in Mumbai in presence of party’s state president Chandrashekhar Bawankule, deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis, and his political mentor and Rajya Sabha member Ashok Chavan, who had quit the Congress in Feb this year and joined the BJP.
Siddique and Antapurkar had allegedly cross-voted in the biennial elections to the 11 seats of the legislative council. In the internal probe, it was revealed that along with Antapurkar and Siddique, five Congress legislators had indulged in cross voting. Then it was decided that instead of taking disciplinary action against them, they will be denied nomination for the assembly elections. However, with the approval of the AICC, Patole expelled them from the primary membership of the party for six years. Now, it remains to be seen whether he expels the remaining five erring legislators or wait till the declaration of assembly polls.
Siddique was elected to the legislative assembly from Bandra (E) by defeating former mayor Vishwanath Mahadeshwar, while Antapurkar was elected in a by-election from Deglur assembly constituency in Nanded district. Significantly, even before he was expelled from the party, Antapurkar, a trusted aide of former chief minister Ashok Chavan, quit the Congress and joined the BJP.
Besides Antapurkar, a few more MLAs from the Marathwada region, who have faith in the leadership of Ashok Chavan, will quit Congress before the assembly elections.
A senior Congress leader said their expulsion from the Congress will not make any difference, since it was a forgone conclusion that sooner or later, they will quit Congress and join NCP or BJP.
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