Bhubaneswar: Senior Congress leader & former Barabati-Cuttack MLA Mohammed Moquim has been expelled from the party’s primary membership over “anti-party activities”.
“This is for the information of all concerned that AICC has approved the proposal for the expulsion of Sri Md. Moquim from the primary membership of the party, due to anti-party activities,” the December 13 notice issued by OPCC president Bhakta Charan Das said.
This decision followed Moquim’s letter sent to Congress President Sonia Gandhi on December 8, in which he had sharply criticised the party’s leadership. He had questioned the effectiveness of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, pointing to his advanced age and supposed inability to connect with the younger generation. He also highlighted his own frustration as an MLA, stating that he had been unable to meet Rahul Gandhi for three years, and attributed the Congress’s repeated electoral failures in Odisha to the leadership of current OPCC president Bhakta Charan Das and former president Sarat Pattanayak.
On Sunday while attending the Congress rally organised at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi against SIR, Das had strongly defended national president Mallikarjun Kharge and questioned Moquim’s political intent.”Those who are associated with the BJP should just go. Kharge ji’s political journey and struggles far exceeded the experiences of those currently questioning his leadership…even younger leaders cannot match his enthusiasm,” he had noted.
Don’t Regret The Letter: Moquim
Responding to the disciplinary action, Moquim expressed disappointment, saying that he had expected his initiatives to contribute to internal reforms in the party, but instead faced expulsion. He added that he fully accepts the decision of the party leadership.
The former MLA further stated that no one can separate him from the core ideology of Congress. “I may have been expelled, but they cannot take the Congress ideology away from me. I do not regret what I wrote to the Congress leadership. I pointed out the mistakes of Rahul Gandhi, he is our leader but not above scrutiny. I am no longer a Congress member, but I will continue to work as a social worker 24×7,” he told reporters.
Moquim was elected from Barabati-Cuttack Assembly constituency in 2019 but was barred from contesting the 2024 Odisha election after a lower court convicted him of corruption. His daughter Sofia Firdous is the current Congress MLA from the seat.
He clarified that the letter was his personal take on the party and Sofia was not even aware of it.
The five-page letter
While expressing frustration over not meeting Rahul Gandhi for three years, the ex-MLA from Barabati-Cuttack demanded a leadership overhaul in the party. He called for the removal of Mallikarjun Kharge, complaining that the 83-year-old veteran “is unable to resonate with India’s youth”. He attributed the “deep and growing disconnect between the Congress leadership and the Indian youth” to the exit of “promising young leaders like Jyotiraditya Scindia and Himanta Biswa Sarma” from the party.
Calling for an “open-heart surgery” for Congress’ ideological, organisation and structural renewal, he said, “I firmly believe the nation, especially its youth, are waiting for Priyanka Gandhiji to take a central, visible and active leadership role.”
He added that it is equally important that leaders such as Sachin Pilot, D K Shivakumar, Revanth Reddy and Shashi Tharoor be elevated to the core leadership of the party.
Describing himself as a “disciplined member”, Moquim had also hit out at the OPCC chief Das for allegedly calling him a “Vibhishan” (betrayers). “Without any basis, Bhakta told the media that I am a Vibhishan within the party,” he said, insisting that internal criticism was being unfairly dismissed as disloyalty.
