After campaigning for the recently concluded civic body elections in Maharashtra, Asaduddin Owaisi's All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has now started the process for the upcoming municipal elections in Telangana. But what has attracted attention is that the AIMIM has asked interested candidates to apply with an Rs 3,000 non-refundable fee. Each applicant must submit a demand draft (DD) of Rs 3,000 along with the application form. The fee is mandatory for candidates seeking AIMIM nomination, and the last date to apply is January 20.
The AIMIM said it asked its town presidents that they must collect all forms and drafts and send them promptly to the party headquarters in Hyderabad. ''Forms should not be distributed or shared without proper direction, and no candidate's name can be announced at this stage. Incomplete applications will not be considered," the party said.
The final list of candidates will be officially announced by Asaduddin Owaisi once the process is complete.
Municipal Polls Expected To Be Held In Mid-Feb
The municipal elections in Telangana, expected to be held in mid-February, will cover 3,000 wards in 117 municipalities and six municipal corporations. One of the most anticipated developments will be in the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC).
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Election preparations began with the final voter lists being published in January.
In the last GHMC polls, the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) (formerly known as the Telangana Rashtra Samithi) was the single largest party with around 56 wards out of 150, followed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with about 48 wards and AIMIM with about 44 seats. The Congress won only 2 seats, showing very poor performance in the urban civic body then.
The real eye-catcher in the previous GHMC election was the BJP, as it brought all of its top guns, like Union Home Minister Amit Shah, JP Nadda, Yogi Adityanath, and other top leaders, for campaigning. Though the BJP didn't win, it became the second largest party in the municipal body.
In 2016, the BJP only won 4 seats in the Hyderabad municipal polls but managed to win 48 in 2020. In the upcoming polls, the party is eyeing to win the GHMC.
Since 2020, Telangana as well as Hyderabad politics have shifted significantly. The BRS lost power in the 2023 Telangana Assembly elections, where the Congress won a majority of seats overall but failed to win a single seat within the GHMC limits, highlighting the party's struggle to convert state-level success into urban Hyderabad successes.
AIMIM's Closeness With Congress
After the BRS lost power and Congress' Revanth Reddy became the Chief Minister, the AIMIM moved closer to the Congress.
With the AIMIM's support, the Congress won the Jubilee Hills Assembly by-election, defeating the BRS in a seat once considered the latter's stronghold, a result that signals a weakening the BRS' in urban areas.
