Will AIMIM gamble pay-off for Telangana Congress?
One of the biggest shocks of the lok sabha election was the newfound harmony between the congress and the All india Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) in Telangana. While the AIMIM is renowned for being close to whichever party is in power, some congress officials fear that collaborating (even if informally) with the AIMIM would be a risky move, since it may have the reverse effect on the grand old party.
On the penultimate day of the election campaign, AIMIM chairman Asaduddin Owaisi, without identifying anyone, urged Muslim voters to support congress candidates for several lok sabha seats. Many were surprised by this since it signaled the AIMIM's total turn towards the congress and away from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).
“His words to vote for congress are likely to backfire as it has consolidated Hindu votes against the congress, and towards the bharatiya janata party (BJP). As far as I understand, the bjp now stands a chance to even win as many as eight seats. From the beginning some of us were against joining hands with the AIMIM, and only wanted tactical support from the outside,” said a congress leader who did not want to be quoted.
He claimed that while congress leaders in delhi were opposed to cooperating with the AIMIM, telangana chief minister and state party president revanth reddy was in favor of it. "He persuaded them to let us collaborate with AIMIM." If we win 10 seats, everything would be OK; but, if congress and bjp obtain identical numbers, the party will undergo significant adjustments," the congress leader told india Herald.
The congress in telangana wants AIMIM's help to get as many Muslim votes as possible, particularly in seats outside of hyderabad where the Muslim vote share is high.
The congress in telangana wants AIMIM's help to get as many Muslim votes as possible, particularly in seats outside of hyderabad where the Muslim vote share is high.
In telangana, it is widely known that revanth reddy and previous party head and state minister N reddy NALAMADA' target='_blank' title='uttam kumar reddy-Latest Updates, Photos, Videos are a click away, CLICK NOW">uttam kumar reddy do not get along. Uttam and a few others were purportedly contending for the position of chief minister. However, revanth reddy has so far maintained his position, and the party, which won 64 seats, has experienced a few BRS defections. The congress leader further stated that additional BRS MLAs are expected to defect following the lok sabha election results.
In the run-up to the lok sabha elections, the congress, bjp, and BRS are expected to compete in three-way races. The AIMIM is likely to maintain its hyderabad Parliamentary seat, which it has held since 1984. The congress, which won the telangana Assembly elections in December, hopes to capitalise by winning more seats this time.
In the 2019 lok sabha elections, the BRS won nine seats, while the congress, bjp, and AIMIM won three, four, and one, respectively.
In the 2019 lok sabha elections, the BRS won nine seats, while the congress, bjp, and AIMIM won three, four, and one, respectively.