Hyderabad: The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has requested the ruling Congress party in Telangana to allocate one seat in the Legislative Council, as its sitting MLC, Mirza Riyazul Hassan Effendi, is set to retire this month.
Effendi is among five MLCs whose terms are ending, with elections for these seats under the MLAs’ quota scheduled for March 20. AIMIM, led by Asaduddin Owaisi, is eager to retain the seat, but the Congress is reportedly facing a dilemma due to multiple contenders within its own ranks.
With its current strength in the Legislative Assembly, Congress is in a position to secure three of the five seats. However, its ally, the CPI, is also demanding an MLC seat.
Congress holds 65 seats in the 119-member Assembly. While 10 MLAs from BRS have defected to Congress, their voting eligibility remains uncertain, as the Supreme Court is still hearing disqualification petitions against them. If disqualification is a concern, these MLAs might be compelled to vote for the official BRS candidates.
For Congress to win a fourth MLC seat, it would need the support of all 10 defected BRS MLAs, AIMIM’s seven MLAs, and the lone CPI MLA. Meanwhile, BRS, with its 28 MLAs, is expected to field two candidates, making the contest competitive.
Four of the retiring MLCs belong to BRS, including former deputy chief minister and ex-home minister Mahmood Ali. It remains unclear whether BRS will re-nominate him.
Given the strong demand for MLC seats from within the Congress, party leadership may not accommodate AIMIM and CPI. Instead, AIMIM may be offered an MLC seat from the Hyderabad local authorities’ constituency. With Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) elections expected this year, Congress hopes to gain AIMIM’s support for controlling the civic body in exchange for the MLC seat.
Following Effendi’s retirement, AIMIM will have only one MLC, Mirza Rahmat Baig, who was elected in February 2023 with BRS support from the Hyderabad local authorities’ constituency. AIMIM, which was previously aligned with BRS, has since revived its ties with Congress after the latter came to power. The party has been supporting the Congress government on key issues, and Congress has maintained friendly relations in return.
Meanwhile, Congress is likely to nominate a Muslim leader for the MLC elections. Mohammed Faheemuddin Qureshi, vice-chairman and president of the Telangana Minority Residential Educational Institutions Society (TMREIS), is a strong contender. If elected, he is also expected to be inducted into the state cabinet.
Faheemuddin Qureshi is considered close to Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, and there is mounting pressure on Congress to include a Muslim leader in the cabinet. Since none of Congress’s Muslim candidates won Assembly seats, the cabinet currently lacks Muslim representation, drawing criticism from the community and opposition parties despite strong Muslim support in Congress’s electoral victory.
