Blackburn ex-councillor says Labour silent on intimidation complaint

A FORMER Blackburn councillor has accused Labour of inaction over her complaint of “bullying and intimidation”.

Saima Afzal, regarded as a “trailblazer” British Asian politician after her election in 2018, claimed that a few Muslim male councillors “sidelined” her for speaking up about various issues including “sexism”.

She blamed male Muslim members for her deselection last year, according to the BBC.

Although Labour said it took all complaints “seriously”, the party declined to comment on her claims of “bullying and intimidation” within the organisation.

“I speak out against homophobia, racism, sexism wherever I see it and whoever I see it within… That was my crime," Afzal said at her last council meeting.

She had unsuccessfully contested council elections as a Labour candidate two decades ago and has previously accused Asian men of being “unsupportive”.

Afzal said her short and “turbulent” term as a councillor was fraught with difficulties.

“The obstacles I encountered had less to do with the many difficult situations faced by and brought to me by my constituents such as domestic abuse, poverty and the many complex problems raised by the Covid-19 pandemic. Instead, they had everything to do with the nasty obstructions and slurs of some of my fellow politicians”, she told the Lancashire Telegraph.