Assam Congress MP Abdul Khaleque resigns after being denied LS ticket

Guwahati: Congress MP Abdul Khaleque, who has been denied a ticket in Assam for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, resigned from the party on Friday.

The Barpeta MP sent a letter, resigning from the primary membership of the party, to its national president Mallikarjun Kharge.

Khaleque, a two-time MLA and one-time MP, was not given the Congress ticket this time, with the party naming its state Seva Dal chief Deep Bayan from the Barpeta constituency.

In the resignation letter, the MP claimed that the party has taken a "strange route" in the state, where "people-centric issues have taken a back seat".

"...I feel that the attitude and approach taken by the party's state president and AICC general secretary in-charge has ruined the prospect of the party in Assam," he maintained.

The Congress has three MPs in the outgoing Lok Sabha, out of a total of 14 seats from the state. The two other incumbents, Gaurav Gogoi and Pradyut Bordoloi, have again been given party tickets.