Albert Scardino has stepped down from the post of executive editor of the Guardian newspaper, just a week after the controversial dismissal of trainee journalist Dilpazier Aslam over his undeclared Islamist interests.

Rumours had circulated last night that Mr Scardino was about to leave, but sources at the newspaper today were at pains to point out that the departure was entirely unconnected with the Aslam affair.

Alan Rusbridger, the editor of the Guardian, said: "Albert Scardino, executive editor for the home and foreign departments, has decided to leave the Guardian in October, at the end of his second annual contract, to pursue online and entertainment projects. We wish him well for the future."

Earlier this week, union members at The Guardian held a meeting at the newspaper's Farringdon Road offices to discuss what action to take over the treatment of Mr Aslam, who although he was a member of Hizb'ut Tahrir, the extremist Islamist party, made no reference to this when he applied for the position, and this was not declared in the newspaper when he wrote on Islamic issues or filed a comment piece on the July 7 bombings.

Mr Aslam’s ties to the group, which is outlawed in several countries but operates legally in the UK were revealed by Scott Burgess, who runs the Daily Ablution blog.

At the NUJ meeting, Mr Aslam was asked questions about the anti-Semitism of Hizb'ut Tahrir. The chapel, chaired by Matt Seaton, discussed three separate motions.

The first motion authorised chapel officers to continue to represent Dilpazier Aslam, if required by him, at an appeal against his dismissal should he choose to pursue one.

The second motion, which was overwhelmingly passed, called on him to repudiate the 2002 Hizb'ut Tahrir Jenin leaflet, which falsely accused Ariel Sharon of a massacre in the Jenin refugee camp.

The third motion regretted "the precipitate action" taken by Guardian Newspapers. Mr Aslam was sacked after a meeting with chief executive Carolyn McCall.

Mr Scardino, an American, is the husband of Marjorie Scardino, the chief executuive of Pearson, the media group that owns the Financial Times.

Some of the blogs which "outed" Mr Aslam have also claimed that he was appointed by Mr Scardino under a scheme to bring under-represented ethnic groups to the paper.

But Guardian sources today were stressing that while Mr Scardino "was very loosely responsible" for recruitment issues, he had not interviewed Mr Aslam and had not involved "in any way" in the decision to grant him a place on the diversity scheme.

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