Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) has asked suspended Barabati-Cuttack MLA Sofia Firdous to resign from her seat and seek a fresh mandate.
This came a day after Sofia attended and addressed the launch ceremony of the newly-formed Odisha Janata Congress (OJC), a regional outfit floated by her father, expelled Congress leader Mohammed Moquim. She had already been suspended from the party for defying the whip and cross-voting in the Rajya Sabha elections held on March 16, where she and two other Congress MLAs supported a BJP-backed independent candidate, Dilip Ray, contributing to a clean sweep for the ruling party in the state’s three seats.
Biswajit Mohanty, chairman of the OPCC’s social media team, stated that the Cuttack District Congress Committee passed a censure motion against Sofia for participating in the event organised by her father. Cuttack city Congress president Santayan Mishra announced that a party delegation would meet Assembly Speaker Surama Padhy to submit a memorandum demanding the cancellation of Firdous’s membership under anti-defection provisions.
Speaking to the media, Sofia said that she attended the event on an invitation. “We receives a lot of invitations and attend programmes wherever possible,” the MLA said, adding that she continues to work for the people of her constituency.
The legislator further stated that though suspended, she continues to be in Congress. “I can comment on the statements only after reviewing those,” she added.
