Mr. Azmi, who is also the senior MLA for Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar, alleged that the Congress party does not want to leave any scope for its alliance partners. His remarks came days after the SP suffered a severe setback in the Bihar Assembly election.
Mumbai: Maharashtra Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Abu Asim Azmi on Wednesday announced that the party will contest the upcoming local body elections, particularly the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) polls, independently. The party plans to field candidates in 150 BMC seats.
Mr. Azmi, who is also the senior MLA for Mankhurd Shivaji Nagar, alleged that the Congress party does not want to leave any scope for its alliance partners. His remarks came days after the SP suffered a severe setback in the Bihar Assembly election. The Congress had previously announced its intention to go solo in the BMC elections, citing the desire of its Mumbai leaders and workers to fight the civic body polls alone.
Confirming the SP's strategy, Mr. Azmi said, “We will begin distributing nomination forms to interested applicants from today itself, and the process will continue till December 5. The party will only field candidates in those 150 wards where the party’s organisational base is strong.”
Taking a direct dig at the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) — comprising the Congress, the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) — the Maharashtra SP chief asserted that the Congress neither respects nor stands by its allies and betrays them. “During the previous Assembly elections, the Congress and the MVA betrayed the Samajwadi Party. No seats were allotted to SP till the last date of filing nominations, and later only two seats were given to us without any discussion,” he said.
Mr. Azmi claimed that SP National President, Akhilesh Yadav, has given him complete authority over election-related decisions in Maharashtra. “We are free to form alliances with secular parties, but the Congress’s attitude towards its allies is not appropriate. That is why the Congress lost the Bihar Assembly elections. Earlier too, the Congress has lost elections in many states. Until it changes its attitude towards its allies, it will not be able to win elections,” he added.
