AIMIM To Officially Disclose Its Decision With A Couple Of Days
HYDERABAD: AIMIM will officially announce its decision on whether to contest the general election in Jubilee Hills in the next two days. Party president Asaduddin Owaisi’s sustained tirade against his former ally BRS has all but eliminated any possibility of a realignment in 2023.
According to party sources, the leadership, which has already started deliberating on the pros and cons of supporting another political party, will soon hold another round of talks. AIMIM is assessing the situation in Jubilee Hills constituency before taking a final decision in this important by-poll. “There will be another round of talks before a decision is reached,” party leaders said.
With a sizeable Muslim population in various districts and AIMIM corporators representing several of them – there are around 1.12 lakh Muslim voters in the 3.99 lakh strong electorate; Even as other parties start nominating candidates for the November 11 polls, the party continues to hold its bargaining chip. The delay in taking a decision by AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, coupled with his constant attacks on the BRS, has fueled speculation that the party may not field its own candidate and instead support Congress candidate Naveen Yadav.
In the 2023 Assembly elections, AIMIM nominated Shaikpet corporator Mohammed Rashed Farazuddin, who came fourth by a wide margin with 7,848 votes, while BRS candidate Maganti Gopinath retained his seat.
Meanwhile, state BJP president N. Ramchander Rao alleged that there was a “secret agreement” between the Congress and AIMIM in the by-poll, citing Naveen Yadav’s past association with the Assembly and his AIMIM candidacy in the 2014 state elections.
At a recent public meeting, Asaduddin Owaisi did not openly support any candidate but urged people to vote for “proactive local youth”. This led to accusations that the AIMIM was effectively supporting its own workers contesting on the Congress ticket to ensure victory with Congress support.
