Zeeshan, son of Baba Siddique, joins Ajit Pawar's NCP faction; Maharashtra politics heats up ahead of 2024 elections

The son of a leading Congress member, Baba Siddique, today joined the Ajit Pawar faction of the Nationalist Congress Party ahead of the 2024 Maharashtra Assembly polls. Zeeshan Siddique is expected to give the party a boost in the Mumbai south central constituency, where his father has his pockets of influence. On October 25, Siddique made the move by joining NCP, days after which the party announced him as its candidate for Bandra East Assembly constituency.

Zeeshan Siddique, a former Congress MLA, has been disaffiliated by the Congress party. With his move to the NCP, led by Ajit Pawar, Siddique is likely to contest once again from his traditional seat, Bandra East constituency that he represented earlier. His induction into NCP stands to cause quite a setback to Congress as Siddique enjoys popularity and well-known local support.

The Ajit Pawar faction of the NCP has also given a ticket to Nawab Malik's daughter Sana Malik as an official party candidate. Along with Zeeshan Siddique, the NCP faction has inducted four other influential leaders from the list who include Sanjay Kakade from Tasgaon Kavathe, Devendra Bhuyar from Varud Murshi, Nishikant Patil from Islampur, and former BJP MP Prataprao Chikhalikar from Loha Kandhar .

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"Working with NCP Is Not New"

The news about his induction came as nothing new to Zeeshan Siddique, who said: Working with NCP is nothing new. In previous elections, we had collaborated with NCP, and now, I'll continue my efforts from within the party. He further commented that there must be some political pressure from the Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray faction of Shiv Sena as Congress let his constituency to be taken by some other candidate. "Fulfillment of My Father's Legacy"

Zeeshan also spoke about his motivation to continue the work started by his late father, Baba Siddique, who was a big figure in Mumbai politics till his death. "My father sacrificed his life working for the people, and I intend to fulfill his unfinished fight," he said. Zeeshan also quoted the ongoing efforts he was making for the information that could lead Mumbai police to crack the murder mystery of his father's killers.

The appointment of Zeeshan Siddique, a young candidate by the Ajit Pawar faction of NCP, is one such strategic move ahead of the Maharashtra elections. While the party has thrown open its doors to the likes of Nawab Malik's daughter, it also seems to be well-stocked with young blood in people like Siddique.

The new dynamics point to the political machinations within Maharashtra as parties vie for positions, thereby narrowing down their authority and constituencies that will support them the most. With these new inclusions, the NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar looks forward to challenging not just Congress but BJP also in the ensuing elections.