NE NEWS SERVICE
AHMEDABAD, JAN 23
The credit for the BJP’s political growth in Gujarat goes to Main Opposition Congress as the latter failed to checkmat it for over two decades. Fed up with both parties, Gujarat people have been longing for a “powerful force” as a viable alternative and AIMIM will fulfil their needs. The ‘kite’ (party symbol) will take off and fly sky high in Gujarat with its secular credentials, said the Asaduddin Owaisi-led All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) party’s newly appointed leaders here on Saturday.
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The AIMIM will contest the upcoming Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation elections in at least 15 wards, and in alliance with tribal leader Chhotu Vasava-led Bharatiya Tribal Party (BTP) in Bharuch on a seat-sharing basis, the party leaders said.
Asaduddin Owaisi is likely to address rallies in Ahmedabad and Bharuch ahead of polling, they said.
On Saturday, Gujarat unit president Sabir Kabuliwala and state general secretary Hamid Bhatti launched the party’s membership drive in the presence of a group of supporters.
They said the AIMIM will prove to be an “effective alternative to the ruling BJP and opposition Congress in Gujarat”.
The AIMIM had already been registered with the State Election Commission and got the “kite” symbol allocated for contesting in the local body polls in Gujarat, the duo added.
The Owaisi-led party recently announced to contest the local body polls in alliance with the BTP, which had snapped its ties with the Congress over differences in Rajasthan district panchayat polls.
“The incumbent BJP government has seriously neglected the development of Muslims, Dalits, tribals, poor and backward areas, due to which a large number of people remains deprived of basic amenities,” said Kabuliwala, a former MLA of Congress.
He alleged that Congress had failed to uplift the weaker sections of the society when it was in power in power. Further, Main Opposition Congress had failed to “checkmate” the “divisive” BJP for over two decades in Gujarat.
“The Congress has also failed to raise issues of the common people despite being in opposition,” Kabuliwala alleged.
Given the current situation, the people of Gujarat need a strong leadership and an alternative to ensure the welfare of all classes without any discrimination, he said.
“I am confident that under Asaduddin Owaisi’s leadership, we will perform well in Gujarat,” Kabuliwala added.
Gujarat unit AIMIM secretarygeneral Hamidbhai Bhatti said the party has launched a membership drive and will announce the party structure in the state after the local elections.
“At present, our focus is on the upcoming elections in Ahmedabad and Bharuch. Personal interviews have been arranged with aspirants who want to contest on behalf of our party after seeing their bio data. We will go to the people with a commitment to resolving local issues,” he said.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) had also said that it will contest on all the seats in the elections to local bodies in Gujarat, “to provide an alternative to both the BJP and Congress”.
