Asaduddin Owaisi, the chief of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), has announced that the party will determine its strategy regarding alliances for the 2027 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections by October 2. This decision will clarify whether AIMIM will collaborate with other parties in the upcoming electoral contest.
At his Kanpur rally on Sunday, AIMIM chief and Hyderabad MP however made his intention very clear: “We do not want a BJP government to be formed in UP for a third term. AIMIM is attempting to turn that demographic presence into an argument for independent political representation, rather than remaining solely within the traditional SP-led opposition vote structure. Owaisi’s larger pitch is to turn AIMIM from a Muslim vote platform into an alliance vehicle linking Muslim, Dalit, regional and OBC constituencies. Talks involving smaller parties, including Azad Samaj Party and the BSP option are part of that wider plan.
Because these districts contain several constituencies where Muslim voters form an important part of the electorate, the geographical strategy is significant. Owaisi’s UP game plan is getting clearer: AIMIM is building a western UP to Rohilkhand footprint while keeping the alliance card open until October 2. Saharanpur is a key – not a Congress or Samajwadi bastion – Muslim-heavy battleground where 2022 saw BJP win 5 of 7 assembly seats, while Congress captured the Lok Sabha seat in 2024. AIMIM says it is preparing an organisation across 150-200 UP seats. The test is electoral conversion as AIMIM won no UP assembly seat in 2022, despite contesting about 95 seats; in the Saharanpur assembly seat itself, AIMIM polled 8,187 votes (3.15 per cent) – while BSP polled 62,637. However, amid all this it is also true that AIMIM entered the UP contest with no assembly seat, and its 2022 performance shows both the scale of its challenge and the potential relevance of its vote in closely fought constituencies. In the 2022 assembly election, AIMIM contested 95 seats, secured about 0.49 per cent of the statewide vote, and won none. Its strongest result came in Mubarakpur, while 94 of its 95 candidates lost their deposits, according to election data reported after the poll.
We have told all political parties that if you wish to stop the BJP from returning to power, then come and join hands with the AIMIM.
Owaisi warned parties not to interpret AIMIM’s relatively restrained alliance messaging as weakness.
Referring to the party’s experience during the Bihar election, he said political parties had rejected its proposal when AIMIM had sought six seats, and alleged that rival parties had subsequently targeted him and the organisation.
