Raza Murad joins Congress

NEW DELHI: Severing his links with the Samajwadi Party, actor Raza Murad on Friday joined the Congress. Murad will campaign for the party during the forthcoming assembly election in Maharashtra.
Giving reasons for quitting SP, Murad said he was disappointed by UP chief minister Mulayam Singh Yadav''s indifference to the problems of the people.
"I could not show my face to the people.The hope with which I joined SP has been dashed," the actor said, adding that the recent lathicharge on lawyers in Lucknow was the last straw.
Murad, who belongs to Rampur in UP, can be a source of acute discomfiture for SP now that he has vowed to take on the ruling party.
He said he was ready to campaign for the Congress''s revival in UP, adding that "people (in UP) have begun to turn to Congress once again." He, however, declined to call SP a communal outfit and did not share the view that it was in league with BJP.
Murad, who has acted in more than 400 films, will seek votes in Maharashtra, drawing largely on his screen image.
In Mumbai, which has a large migrant population from UP and Bihar, the actor can be in demand. The Congress intends to use him in areas with a minority concentration as well.