MIM draws blank in Nanded civic polls

HYDERABAD: In a huge blow to the All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), the Hyderabad-based party drew a blank in the Nanded-Waghala Municipal Corporation elections, results of which were announced on Thursday.
In the 2012 polls, MIM had made its presence felt winning 11 out of 81 wards on its own, raising hopes that the party would improve its show.However, this time, the party which fielded candidates from 32 wards did not win from any of them.
The Congress swept the polls leaving the Bharatiya Janata Party and Shiv Sena far behind.
The AIMIM contested the polls in alliance with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) this time. The BSP which fielded candidates from 22 wards also drew a blank.
MIM president Asaduddin Owaisi had canvassed extensively for the party's candidates for the polls held on Wednesday . The party had hoped to better its tally from last time but the outcome came as a shock to many .
Owaisi had travelled from Hyderabad to Nanded several times to campaign for the party. The fact that there were two MIM MLAs in Maharashtra gave the party encouragement to go full steam in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections in February this year.
It may be mentioned here that in the 2014 Assembly polls, its candidates won from Aurangabad and Byculla. MIM won three of 59 wards it contested in the 227-member BMC. In the Solapur Municipal Corporation polls, it won from five wards.
In one of his speeches, Asaduddin Owasi poked fun at Congress leaders. He said Congress leaders did not even have the guts to sit in front of their leaders. “This is their behavior,“ he said. He alleged that Congress-BJP were like “Ram-Shyam“ and against minorities. He said if at least 10-15 MIM candidates would win in the Nanded-Waghala elections, they would have a big say in the running of the corporation to ensure better civic amenities.