BHUBANESWAR: In a major development, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) on Saturday suspended Cuttack-Barabati MLA Mohammad Moquim along with former MLA and ex-working president of Odisha Pradesh Congress Commitee (OPCC) Chiranjib Biswal from the party for anti-party activities.The disciplinary action against the two senior leaders was taken on the basis of complaints by OPCC president Sarat Pattanayak.
Conveying the decision, AICC general secretary and member secretary of the party’s disciplinary action committee (DAC) Tariq Anwar said, OPCC president Sarat Pattanayak had complained that MLA Mohammad Moquim and ex-MLA Chiranjib Biswal were indulging in anti-party activities. The matter was referred to the DAC which had served show cause notice to them seeking their explanations.
“The replies received from them were carefully considered by the DAC and found unsatisfactory. Accordingly, the DAC has decided to place both of them under suspension from the party with immediate effect,” said an AICC statement issued by Anwar.
Describing the AICC decision arbitrary, Moquim said, “I have not done anything wrong. AICC did not give me an opportunity to present my case.” He said the party issued show cause after he organised a meeting in Cuttack to remember the golden era of Odisha politics ushered in by former chief minister JB Patnaik and his deputy Basanta Biswal.
“In my explanation, I told the party that the objective of organising such a meeting was to give a message that despite many differences the two worked for the development of the state and the party as well. But the party took it the other way and gave a tag of anti-party activity,” Moquim said.
Moquim, who won Cuttack-Barabati seat for the Congress after more than three decades in 2019, though said said he was still very much with the party. Dubbing it as temporary setback, he said, “The post of PCC president is not permanent for anyone. Today Sarat babu is there and someone else will be in his place tomorrow. I am with the Congress and will continue to work for the party.”
In his reaction, Biswal, who had attended the Cuttack meeting organised by Moquim, said, “I had never worked against the party’s interest nor gave any anti-party statement. There is absolutely no ground for our suspension.”
Biswal had allegedly raised questions on candidate selection by state Congress for the by-elections and was critical of OPCC in the meeting. There were only nine MLAs of Congress in the state, but 20 leaders were aspiring to become chief minister, he had reportedly said.