Suspense over AIMIM candidates continues; party may consider fresh faces

Hyderabad: Voters of the Old City in Hyderabad are busy calculating the probability of sitting MLAs from AIMIM getting party tickets in the forthcoming Telangana elections. Some are assuming that the party leadership may introduce a few new faces this election by dropping the sitting MLAs.

The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) party had fielded its sitting MLAs in the 2018 elections. The party swapped the constituencies of two MLAs, Mumtaz Ahmed Khan and Syed Ahmed Pasha Quadri; Yakutpura MLA Ahmed Khan entered the fray from Charminar while Charminar MLA Pasha Quadri contested from Yakutpura.

Fielding for family

It is pertinent to mention that Mumtaz Ahmed Khan has been in the Legislative Assembly since 1994. He won the elections six times consecutively. He was first elected as an MLA from the Yakutpura constituency on the Majlis Bachao Tehreek ticket and later switched his loyalty to AIMIM.

Now, Mumtaz Ahmed Khan announced that he is not going to contest in the next elections. Sources in the party said he is interested in transferring his legacy to the next generation as he is more interested in fielding one of his sons as the party’s candidate.

Retirement calls

Likewise, Akbaruddin Owaisi — the firebrand speaker of the party and younger brother of party supremo Asaduddin Owaisi — had earlier declared that it might be his last elections as he desires to spend his remaining life ‘seeking the guidance of Almighty and serving the community.’ Akbaruddin was elected as the MLA five times consecutively from the Chandrayangutta constituency. He defeated the party’s defector and MBT supremo Late Amanullah Khan in his debut in 1999 by a huge margin.

Sitting MLAs in queue for ticket

Ahmed Pasha Quadri and Mohammed Moazam Khan (Bahadurpura constituency) are also four-time MLAs. Mohammed Moazam Khan had won the seat with a majority of 82,000 votes. Moazam Khan began his political career by defeating Congress senior leader and MLA Danam Nagender in 2004.

Ahmed Bin Abdullah Balala is a three-time MLA representing the Malakpet constituency since 2009. In 2014, AIMIM’s Ahmed Balala won with a majority of 68,391 votes. Malakpet falls under circle 6 under the Charminar Zone of GHMC.

Jaffar Hussain Meraj has been representing the Nampally constituency since 2014. Many leaders in the AIMIM are in queue for party tickets, among them are former mayor and party’s youth leader Mohd Majid Hussain and senior leader Yaser Arafath, who are considered strong contenders.

Yaser Arafath is said to be the in-charge of the Yakutpura constituency, working under Ahmed Pasha Quadri. Mohd Majid Hussain was the youngest mayor of Hyderabad elected as the corporator of AIMIM.

Party workers hoping that this time Dr Nooruddin Owaisi, son of Akbaruddin Owaisi, may be fielded as the party candidate from one of the seven constituencies represented by the AIMIM. Not only party leaders, but businessmen and their sons are also aspiring to contest in the elections under the AIMIM banner.

There is always suspense about the candidates as the party never discloses the names till the final decision is taken by the party president. Asaduddin Owaisi had said that no MLA would know beforehand whether he would get a party ticket.