However, Patni exclusively told The Free Press Journal, “Our party is widely recognised and appreciated by a lot of people for fighting relevant issues. No political party has gained such recognition in a short period because of which we are confident in these civic polls. We are counting on 50 seats across the city.”
Despite banking on the Muslim vote for the upcoming elections, Patni said they are a secular party. “We have always believed in a secular nation. The reason behind our victory in the previous Maharashtra elections is because voters of all sections of the society have voted for us. We are also looking for candidates who believe in secularism.”
The party will be contesting the civic polls from Govandi, Mumbadevi, Byculla, Joegshwari, Bandra-Mahim, Andheri, Kurla and Dharavi.
Rubbishing claims of SP Corporator Yakub Memon’s entering the AIMIM, Patni said, “We have not finalised any candidates till date. We are not considering people who are approaching us for political gain or ticket to contest elections. Also, we don’t need a well-known face for our party’s win.”
