Aditya Thackeray, Abu Azmi
Politics related to the Mumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections are intensifying. Maharashtra Samajwadi Party (SP) president Abul Azmi has created a stir among Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) voters by announcing to contest the BMC elections alone. Abu Azmi said that the Samajwadi Party cannot coexist with those who spread hatred and will show its strength by fighting alone in the BMC elections.
Shiv Sena of Uddhav Thackeray Group took strong revenge against Abu Azmi for this statement. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and spokesperson Anand Dubey claimed that Abu Azmi’s party was functioning like a “B-team” of the BJP. “The Samajwadi Party has taken this step to directly benefit the BJP,” Dubey said. They hope to strengthen the BJP by cutting votes of Mahavika Aghadi and the Indian Alliance.
Shiv Sena (UBT) charges
Dubey further said that the notification for the Mumbai Municipal Corporation elections has not yet been issued but Abu Azmi has announced to contest alone. He said, “If the SP is confident of its strength, then it should contest the elections alone, but its objective is clearly to defeat Mahavika Aghadi and not win itself.”
Demand action against Azmi
Shiv Sena (UBT) has called on Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav to take action against Abu Azmi. The Shiv Sena said the MVA and the Indian Alliance were fighting the BJP with all their might, but leaders like Abu Azmi had weakened the alliance by announcing they would contest the elections alone. The Shiv Sena said this attitude will harm the alliance and the BJP will directly benefit from it.
Abu Azmi claimed that the Samajwadi Party will operate independently in the Mumbai Municipal Corporation elections and win seats on its own. However, the Shiv Sena (UBT) denied this and said the SP’s strength in Maharashtra is very limited. “The SP has only two seats in Maharashtra,” the Shiv Sena quipped. “If they want to fight alone, they are free, but they will not gain anything from it.”
Importance of BMC elections
The Mumbai Municipal Corporation elections are very important in Maharashtra politics as it is the richest city in the country. The traditional control of both Shiv Sena factions is considered strong here. The MVA and the Indian Union have joined forces to fight the BJP. Under these circumstances, the SP’s separate announcement of candidacy was considered a blow to the alliance’s strategy.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) has made it clear that they will fight tooth and nail in Mumbai and will work for the development of the city after winning the elections. Now, it will be interesting to see how much impact this SP decision will have on the election results.
