Maharashtra: Congress To Send A Muslim Face To Legislative Council; Naseem Khan, Muzaffar Hussain Among Frontrunners

The Congress party, which emerged as the single largest party in Maharashtra in the Lok Sabha elections, has begun preparations for the Legislative Council elections. In the Lok Sabha elections, Congress contested 17 seats in the state and won 13 of them. In Sangli, Congress leader Vishal Patil, who had rebelled and fought independent, won in a three-cornered fight and has extended his support to the party. Notably, this time, Congress did not field a single Muslim candidate.

However, for the Legislative Council elections, Congress has decided to give an opportunity to a Muslim candidate. During a meeting in Delhi, state Congress leaders reportedly presented their stance to the party leadership, emphasising that the Muslim community had supported Congress well in the Lok Sabha elections. Therefore, they argued, a leader from the community should be given a chance in the Legislative Council as a gesture of gratitude. The leadership has approved this request.

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A total of nine seats in the Legislative Council are vacant. Given the number of MLAs Congress has, one of their candidates is likely to win. The term of Congress leader Wajahat Mirza in the Legislative Council is coming to an end, so he may be nominated again. Along with Mirza, former MLAs Muzaffar Hussain and Naseem Khan are also being considered.

Muzaffar Hussain is a former corporator and deputy mayor of Mira Road Bhayander Municipal Corporation. He was a member of the Legislative Council from 2004 to 2009 and again from 2014 to 2016. In 2019, he became the executive president of the state Congress. Naseem Khan, who is also being considered for the Legislative Council candidacy, is a former MLA from Chandivali and has served in the state cabinet. He was keen to contest the Lok Sabha elections.