The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) is eyeing an expansion in Uttar Pradesh with the party having set its sights on the urban local body elections. The Hyderabad-headquartered party has fielded its candidates across posts.
The urban local body polling is scheduled in two phases. While the first phase is on May 4, the second is slated for May 11. The counting will be on May 13.
At a recent press conference organised soon after gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother were killed, Hyderabad parliamentarian Asaduddin Owaisi told the media that his party’s expansion in Uttar Pradesh would remain unchanged.
The AIMIM upped the ante and continued with their public meetings.
Party sources said that their candidates were contesting as many as 10 mayoral posts. These include those in Meerut, Ghaziabad, Aligarh, Mathura, Bareilley and Morabad, among others.
“As per the directions of our party president, our candidates are contesting for the posts of president of nagar palika parishads and nagar panchayats as well, apart from the mayor posts. While for the former, the party has fielded 52 candidates, for the latter 63 have been fielded,” a party source said.
As part of their campaign, Mr Owaisi addressed public meetings, including those in Kundarki and Umri Kalan in Moradabad district.
According to party sources, the party has been trying to strengthen itself, and at the same time has been dismissing allegations of it being the Bharatiya Janata Party’s “B team”.
“Our candidates are also contesting for ward member posts in over 430 posts as well,” an AIMIM functionary said, adding that candidates have been fielded for parishad member posts.
While the party has been striving to make a mark in UP urban local body polls, it has also been busy in the south. While it was speculated that the party would contest a larger number of seats in the crucial Karnataka Assembly polls that are around the corner, the party decided to field its candidates in two constituencies - Hubli-Dharwad East and Basavana Bagewadi. The AIMIM is supporting Sushil Kumar, an independent candidate, from the Jamkhandi Assembly constituency.
