Senior Odisha Congress leader and former MLA Mohammed Moquim has been expelled from the party after challenging its state leadership, an OPCC leader announced on Monday. Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Bhakta Charan Das confirmed the action, stating that Moquim was removed for "anti-party activities."
"This is for the information of all concerned that AICC (All India Congress Committee) has approved the proposal for the expulsion of Sri Md. Moquim from the primary membership of the party, due to anti-party activities,” Das said in a statement.
Moquim, a former MLA from the Barabati-Cuttack assembly segment, had recently challenged the OPCC leadership by writing a five-page letter to Congress leader Sonia Gandhi.
Congress sources said that the erstwhile legislator made his letter public and gave statements to television channels, which they deemed an improper platform to discuss internal party matters. The letter reportedly questioned the leadership of the OPCC president and raised concerns about the state unit's functioning.
Additionally, Moquim had also raised questions about the age of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, with a senior leader criticising the manner in which the former lawmaker challenged both the state and the national leadership.
The OPCC media cell chief, Arabinda Das, said in a statement that Moquim’s communication was "not intended to reform the party, rather to create disturbance in the organisation." The central leadership reportedly accepted Das's proposal to expel Moquim after finding his actions a violation of party discipline.
In response to the expulsion, Moquim remained defiant: “I have no regret about writing a letter to Sonia Gandhi and raising pertinent issues. They have expelled me from the party, but cannot distance me from the Congress ideology which I follow in letter and spirit."
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