Badruddin Ajmal on Muslim votes: All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) president Badruddin Ajmal claimed that without Muslim votes, the Bharatiya Janata Party can't win the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and form the government at the Centre.
Addressing a press conference on Tuesday (January 9) evening in Goalpara, Ajmal, flanked by party leaders, said, "Union Minister Giriraj Singh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat also said that we should go to Muslim areas, visit mosques and madrasas and bring at least 10 percent of the votes so that we can form the government; otherwise, we cannot."
"If they will (Muslims) come along, then we will welcome them," Lok Sabha MP said. He further said that they have advised their party members and supporters not to vote for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the upcoming elections.
"We have already directed our party members and supporters and advised them that not a single vote goes to the BJP," he added.
In November, Ajmal said that his party had given away 11 seats to the Congress to fight against the Bharatiya Janata Party in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. He had also said that his party will contest three seats in Assam in the elections.
"We will contest in 3 out of 14 Lok Sabha seats in Assam. We will contest in Dhubri, Nagaon and Karimganj seats and we have given away other 11 seats to the Congress to fight against the BJP. AIUDF will support I.N.D.I.A bloc," Ajmal had said.
Meanwhile, amid talks between the I.N.D.I.A partners to arrive at a seat-sharing agreement for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, BJP national president JP Nadda on Tuesday (January 9) arrived in Guwahati to chair key party meetings in the state.
According to sources, the BJP national chief will preside over the state executive and core committee meetings of the party's Assam unit, with an eye on the coming elections. BJP has nine MPs from the state. Assam has 14 Lok Sabha seats with Congress having three MPs, AIUDF one, and one seat represented by an independent candidate.
(With ANI inputs)
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