Bihar polls: Owaisi eyes alliance or third front
Asaduddin Owaisi
has stepped up efforts to re-engage the state's
minority vote bank
, especially after the passage of the Waqf Bill. Concerned about losing ground, especially after RJD and Congress joined anti-Waqf protests, AIMIM is trying to reposition itself.
In 2020, AIMIM won five seats in alliance with Upendra Kushwaha and BSP-all in the Seemanchal region-but four MLAs later defected to the RJD. The party is now left with just Akhtarul Iman, its state chief.
Iman recently wrote an open letter to INDIA bloc parties urging them to include AIMIM in their alliance. "We're waiting for a response. The assembly session starts next week. If they ignore us, the people will judge both sides," he told ET.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
Play War Thunder now for free
War Thunder
Play Now
Undo
On the SIR exercise in Bihar, Owaisi met EC officials separately in Delhi. Iman, who is among the petitioners in the Supreme Court case, said, "I am the only petitioner who is also a voter in Bihar."
Sources said Owaisi and Iman are also exploring a third front, similar to their 2020 strategy.
Live Events
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
41 minutes ago
- Time of India
KMC razes illegal stalls, reclaims govt plot on Anwar Shah Road
1 2 3 4 Kolkata: The KMC on Saturday deployed earth movers to pull down shops and other structures that encroached on a govt plot on Prince Anwar Shah Road near Lord's crossing. The plot, owned by the state information and cultural affairs department at 355, Prince Anwar Shah Road, does not have a boundary wall, allowing encroachers a free run. According to a KMC official, the drive was planned at the civic headquarters and was kept a secret to prevent the news from reaching the encroachers so that they did not get a chance to put up resistance. "We planned to conduct the drive with police without informing the encroachers about it, as that would have led to a ruckus and our work would have been hampered. Last time, the drive to oust encroachers from the state-owned plot was met with resistance. So, we decided on this surprise drive," said a senior KMC official. A KMC solid waste management official said the civic team was mobilised at the Lord's crossing around 1 pm for the demolition. The presence of a large posse of policemen helped civic officials continue with the drive unhindered. "When we left, it was late evening. By then, we had demolished 48 stalls to free up the govt land," said a civic official, adding it was a 30-cottah plot. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like So sánh mức trượt giá: Hợp đồng tương lai (CFD) Bitcoin vs Ethereum IC Markets Tìm hiểu thêm Undo You Can Also Check: Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata According to a KMC official, the civic body will need to barricade the land now and keep a watch on it. Back in June 2024, chief minister Mamata Banerjee had mentioned the encroachment on the Prince Anwar Shah plot while speaking about govt properties and public spaces being taken over illegally. There was an attempt to free the land in 2018, but it was unsuccessful, she had said. Within hours of Banerjee's announcement last year, a police team had visited the plot and collected the names, addresses and phone numbers of the stall owners there. A KMC official had said they were demarcating a 7.5-cottah plot, while owners of the unauthorised structures on the land claimed it was 29-cottah. Now that the illegal structures have been pulled down, the KMC will calculate the exact area and build a wall around it. Stalls selling food, vegetables and lottery tickets and a Trinamool office were among those that occupied the plot, said an official.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Infra works delay: Bawankule slams NMC over non-utilisation of Rs310cr
Nagpur: With civic elections approaching, guardian minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Saturday criticised the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) for inaction in utilising Rs310 crore sanctioned for urban development by the state govt in 2023–24 financial year. The govt has already specified the type of development works to be prioritised under these special infrastructure funds. These include water supply and sewerage works, construction, expansion or cleaning of drains to meet major urban demands, and installation of streetlights, high-mast lighting, footpaths, and stormwater drainage lines. During a high-level review meeting at NMC headquarters, Bawankule expressed strong displeasure over the civic body's failure to submit a zone-wise development plan, despite the funds being earmarked by then deputy chief minister and incumbent CM Devendra Fadnavis. He warned officials to urgently prepare and submit detailed proposals, ensuring the projects align with local needs and benefit citizens. The meeting was attended by city MLAs Krishna Khopde, Pravin Datke, Vikas Thakre, NMC commissioner Abhijeet Chaudhari, district collector Vipin Itankar, and senior civic officials. Bawankule instructed that MLAs be actively consulted in identifying area-specific works and called for the appointment of sub-engineers in each zone to oversee implementation of projects under the District Planning Committee (DPC) fund. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like アマゾンで爆売れ「スゥーっと浸透した」爪に潜む菌まで殺菌する特殊ジェル クリアストロングショットアルファ Undo by Taboola by Taboola He emphasised that execution must begin without further delay. City MLAs also demanded that the civic administration eases mandatory online tender condition for works above Rs10 lakh and insisted that elected representatives be taken into confidence for all development works in their constituencies. The state has encouraged civic bodies to take up projects like building community halls, temples, gyms, libraries, and markets, along with public toilets and urinals. Other permissible works include the development of open spaces, parks, upgradation of existing gardens, conservation of heritage structures, construction or renovation of govt buildings, improving accessibility for persons with disabilities, and development of cremation grounds and green belts such as Amrutvan. Any other infrastructure project directly related to urban services can also be considered. Notably, this is not the first time NMC drew flak for failing to utilise available state funds. Under the 2022–23 district annual plan, the Maharashtra govt made a separate provision for urban infrastructure projects through a govt resolution dated March 28, 2022. The scheme, aligned with the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (particularly SDG 11), allowed 100% state funding for urban local bodies for civic infrastructure upgrades. Official sources confirmed that while urban local bodies (ULBs) across Maharashtra submitted proposals under this scheme, NMC failed to do so — missing a crucial opportunity to address persistent flooding and infrastructure gaps in the city. With elections to the NMC due later this year, the Mahayuti appears eager to show results. But NMC's repeated lapses in planning and proposal submission may become a major political liability unless urgent corrective action is taken.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Commercial And Govt Units Owe 1.3L Crore Water Dues
New Delhi: Pending water bills have surged to a staggering Rs1.4 lakh crore, with commercial consumers and govt departments accounting for the lion's share of this outstanding amount. While commercial users owed Delhi Jal Board Rs66,000 crore and govt departments Rs61,000 crore, domestic consumers had unpaid dues of Rs15,000 crore, according to govt data. Relief from "inflated water bills" will be provided to domestic water users, said minister Parvesh Verma on Saturday, disclosing, "The software upgradation process has started and we are hopeful of launching it in two months." He said smart meters would be installed to prevent the problem of faulty billing from arising again. In response to public grievances, especially from household consumers, Delhi govt is planning a full waiver of the late payment surcharges. Common complaints from residents include inflated bills caused by faulty or estimated meter readings, bills issued during Covid lockdowns when homes remained vacant and arrears that snowballing into thousands or even lakhs of rupees. Non-payment of disputed bills also triggered increasing late fees, increasing the due amount, a govt official said. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 신차장기렌트 선납금 없어도 월 20만원대부터 가능할까? 써치오토모빌 더 알아보기 Undo You Can Also Check: Delhi AQI | Weather in Delhi | Bank Holidays in Delhi | Public Holidays in Delhi Officials said that the proposed waiver excludes commercial users and govt departments and limits it to domestic waivers. No decision has yet been taken on relief of the dues. An official said the was firmly on easing the load on domestic consumers even as the authorities try to recover the unpaid amounts. Verma said that DJB's software would also automatically deduct surcharges and issue fresh bills under the new scheme. However, no relief is currently planned for complaints related to false meter readings. Many users stopped paying the post-Covid bills due to faulty bills. In Oct and Nov 2022, the DJB portal logged over 10,000 complaints about wrong billing. The previous AAP govt promised a one-time settlement scheme last year, but could not execute it. To curb future billing disputes, DJB plans to replace the traditional meters with smart ones. Officials said that the smart meters would resolve all billing inaccuracies. The current practice of meter readers submitting outdated or incorrect images resulted in inaccurate billing, which eventually led to a compilation of underpaid bills. An official said that around 1,000 meter readers managed nearly 26.5 lakh water consumers across 41 DJB zones and this has been seen as ineffective over time. Officials said that Verma had asked the water utility to overhaul the billing and payment system as soon as possible. An application to make the payment process easier is also on the anvil. Sources said the DJB top echelon had been intimated that the current billing system led to many users not paying their bills due to several lacunae. Officials claimed the new metering system would eliminate the role of agents and touts who allegedly accepted bribes to clear bills.
