Why is Rochdale by-election Labour candidate Azhar Ali not a Labour candidate

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

There are 11 candidates standing the Rochdale by-election on Thursday (February 29). Labour selected Lancashire County councillor Azhar Ali to stand in the race to become an MP but withdrew support for him after he made 'deeply offensive' comments about Israel.

Mr Ali apologised for the comments before he was suspended from the party. However, because the deadline to nominate candidates had passed by the time Labour had made the decision, it was too late to select someone else to stand for the party in the by-election.

This means that Mr Ali will still appear on ballot papers next to the Labour logo. But if he wins, he would become an independent MP. Try MEN Premium now for FREE...

just click here to give it a go. The Labour Party has not been campaigning for Mr Ali since February 12. But Mr Ali is allowed to carry on campaigning independently.