AIMIM Maharashtra president Imtiaz Jaleel said that the party has not yet finalised the number of seats it will contest but confirmed that the list of candidates will be announced by December 22 or 23
AIMIM Maharashtra president Imtiaz Jaleel said that the party has not yet finalised the number of seats. File Pic
The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) will contest seats in 27 of the 29 municipal corporations in Maharashtra, including Mumbai, in the upcoming civic polls scheduled for January 15, party leader Imtiaz Jaleel said on Tuesday, reported the PTI.
AIMIM Maharashtra president Imtiaz Jaleel said that the party has not yet finalised the number of seats it will contest but confirmed that the list of candidates will be announced by December 22 or 23.
Speaking to a Marathi news channel in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, the former Lok Sabha MP said that the party has expanded its organisational presence across the state.
“We now have party units in almost every district. We will contest elections in 27 municipal corporations in Maharashtra,” Jaleel said, according to the PTI.
Focus on strongholds
Jaleel said the party will focus on regions where it has a strong base.
He said Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar will be a key focus, noting that AIMIM was the largest opposition party in the city during the previous civic term and had won more seats than the BJP.
Apart from Sambhajinagar, the party plans to contest seats in Nanded, Mumbai, Solapur, and several other civic bodies.
“We may not contest all seats in every corporation, but we will definitely contest in most of them,” he added.
Open to MVA alliance
Jaleel said AIMIM remains open to alliances with like-minded parties, including the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), provided it is a state-wide tie-up.
He also claimed that one of the MVA constituents had approached AIMIM for a pre-poll alliance, though he did not name the party.
The MVA comprises the Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP).
“We are still open to an alliance, including with the MVA, but it must be across the state,” Jaleel said, as per the PTI.
Over one crore voters in Mumbai to decide civic body's future
Meanwhile, over one crore voters in Mumbai will decide who governs the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for the next five years when elections to the country’s richest civic body are held next month.
The BMC on Tuesday published the final electoral rolls on its official portal, showing a total of 1,03,44,315 voters spread across all 227 wards of Mumbai.
The Maharashtra State Election Commission (SEC) announced the election programme on Monday.
High-stakes elections to 29 municipal corporations across Maharashtra, including cash-rich Mumbai civic body, will be held on January 15, with counting of votes scheduled for January 16.
The upcoming polls will see a direct contest between the ruling Mahayuti alliance and the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) for control of key urban centres in the state.
In Mumbai, civic elections are being held almost nine years after the last polls in 2017.
The five-year term of BMC corporators ended on March 7, 2022, following which the civic body has been run by an administrator appointed by the state government.
(with PTI inputs)
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