SP’s U.P. bigwigs to campaign in Mumbai ahead of civic polls

The party currently has six seats in BMC and is contesting on 70 seats for which voting will be held on January 15

The Samajwadi Party (SP) is relying on its senior leaders from Uttar Pradesh to campaign for the party candidates in Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections. The move is being termed as the party’s attempt to expand its political footprint outside Uttar Pradesh.

Maharashtra SP MLA Abu Asim Azmi meeting voters ahead of the civic elections in Mumbai. (PIC: X)

By taking the help of its bigwigs in U.P, the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party seeks to establish a connect with voters from Eastern Uttar Pradesh but are settled in Mumbai, its leaders in Mumbai said.

SP’s national general secretary Shivpal Yadav, LOP in UP Assembly Mata Prasad Pandey, Azamgarh MP Dharmendra Yadav, former minister Kamal Akhtar and MLA Nafees Ahamd are among the top campaigners.

The party currently has six seats in BMC and is contesting on 70 seats for which voting will be held on January 15. The counting of votes will be done on January 16.

Abu Asim Azmi, the party’s Maharashtra state president, had also invited Akhilesh to campaign for the party in the BMC elections.

Speaking to HT over phone, Azmi, who is an MLA from Mankhurd Shivajinagar (Mumbai), said, “We have called big SP leaders from Uttar Pradesh to campaign for our candidates in the BMC elections. We also invited Akhilesh ji on January 10, but it could not be finalised due to some issues.”

Apart from Azmi, the only other SP MLA in the Maharashtra Assembly is Rais Kasam Shaikh (from Bhiwandi East). The party contested the last state elections in Maharashtra as part of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance.