MUMBAI: Two days after the BJP faced flak after its local leaders forged post-poll alliances with the AIMIM in municipal council elections, the party’s ruling allies in the state-level Mahayuti coalition have teamed up with the Asaduddin Owaisi-led All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM).
The pact between the NCP, Shiv Sena and AIMIM was sealed in the Parli Municipal Council elections in Beed. The alignment resulted in the election of the NCP’s Vaijnath Solankhe as group leader of a panel formed to wrest control of the municipal council.
The BJP stayed away from the arrangement. The party drew sharp criticism after its local unit teamed up with the AIMIM in the Akot Municipal Council in Akola district, a party the BJP had been campaigning against for the polls. The state leadership eventually disowned the alliance.
The first phase of the civic polls resulted in a fractured mandate for the Parli Municipal Council in Beed district. In the 35-member council, the NCP won 16 seats, Shiv Sena 2 and AIMIM 1. To get a majority in the municipal council, the NCP formed a panel comprising the Sena, AIMIM and four independents.
The move elicited sharp reactions from opposition parties. The AIMIM said it was exiting the alliance, while the Sena claimed it had extended support to the NCP, not AIMIM.
The Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT) called the move “Dhongi Dharmwaad” (hypocritically religious). “Eknath Shinde, we have now seen your alliance partner. You have joined hands with those against whom you have won the elections. Is this your new ideological stand,” remarked Ambadas Danve, senior Sena (UBT) leader.
AIMIM state president Syed Imtiyaz Jaleel, on the other hand, said the decision on forging an alliance was taken at the local level but they had now snapped the ties. “The real question here is, if we are that communal that you even relate us with Pakistan, why are you approaching us for post-poll elections,” he said, questioning the ruling parties.
Solanke, the newly elected group leader, retorted, “Since we have been elected by the people, we chose to come together to resolve their issues, which is not a crime.”