Bilari MLA who won in May bypoll shocked at loss of ticket

Moradabad: For 34-year-old Mohammad Faheem who won from Bilari constituency here in a bypoll in May 2016, it was a very short run. On Wednesday, he was replaced by the SP chief by Zia Ur Rehman Barq, the grandson of local heavyweight Shafeeq Ur Rehman Barq.
Political observers had dubbed the bypoll in Bilari, necessitated by the death of local MLA Haji Irfan in a road accident, as a semifinal to the 2017 assembly elections. The bypoll saw a high-octane campaign with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Samajwadi Party (SP) and Congress leaving no stone unturned to woo the voters. The entire cabinet of Akhilesh Yadav was camping in Bilari to ensure that the SP candidate won the bypoll.
Senior SP leaders, however, feel that the constituency with around 1.1 lakh Muslim and 40,000 Yadav votes, is a SP stronghold and a change of candidate will not be of much consequence here.
Sitting MLA Mohammad Faheem told TOI, “This was entirely unexpected. The seat was earlier represented by my father and then me. I have sought an appointment with CM Akhilesh Yadav. Hopefully, the party will reconsider its decision.”