THE man who beat ex-council leader Sir Bill Taylor in the local elections has quit the Lib Dems - and is refusing to rule out joining Labour.

Coun Zamir Khan has told officers at Blackburn with Darwen Council that he has resigned from the Lib Dems and will, for now, represent Audley as an independent.

His former group leader, Coun Paul Browne, today criticised Coun Khan's decision - and said he was told by council staff about the resignation at the same time as every other councillor.

Coun Khan pulled off the biggest surprise of the 2004 all-out local elections when he beat Sir Bill, who had served on Blackburn with Darwen Council for more than 20 years.

Foreign Secretary and Blackburn MP Jack Straw later conceded that Sir Bill's role as his agent in General Elections could have persuaded people in the largely Asian ward to vote against him because they opposed the Iraq war.

In a letter to the council's democratic services department, Coun Khan says his decision is due to 'personal reasons'.

When asked if he now plans to apply to join the Labour Party, Coun Khan said: "I will not rule anything out. For the time being, I need to work out what is best for me.

"I have resigned from the Lib Dems for personal reasons and that is all I have to say. I will continue to serve Audley. I see no need to force a by-election just because I am no longer in the Lib Dems. People in Audley know me."

Lib Dem leader, Coun Browne, said: "It would not surprise me one jot if he tried to join Labour.

"But I am disappointed by what he has done and the way he has done it.

"I've heard rumours about him wanting to change parties for a while now, but all he's said to me is that I would be the first to know when he made his decision.

"That's not what happened. I read the same e-mail as everyone else."

After he beat Sir Bill, Coun Khan claimed it was 'mission accomplished'.

Sir Bill, who has chosen not to stand for re-election in next year's local elections, said: "I have no personal animosity, or qualms, about my defeat to Coun Khan, that's democracy."

Sir Bill's defeat led to a large falling out within the Labour Party which, in turn, prompted a walkout of six Asian councillors amid claims of racism.

A high-level Labour Party investigation cleared the party of racism, but did say that many councillors were left out of the decision- making process by a small 'clique' of party members.

Five of the six have since returned, with only ex-education boss Coun Mahfooz Hussain still out in the cold.

Deputy leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, Coun Maureen Bateson, said: "He's entitled to apply to join like anyone else and, like everyone else, he'd have to prove he was committed to the party.

"Being in a political party is not something you do for convenience, it's something you do because you've signed up to the party's beliefs."

The swap means the make-up of the council is now: Labour, 32 seats; Conservative, 17; Lib Dems, 11; Independent, four.