Hyderabad, Nov (IANS) The AIMIM will contest nine seats in Telangana Assembly elections scheduled on November 30.

AIMIM President and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi on Friday announced that in addition to seven seats it currently holds, the party will also contest Rajendra Nagar and Jubilee Hills. All the nine constituencies are in state capital Hyderabad.

The party decided to drop two sitting legislators Syed Ahmed Pasha Quadri and Mumtaz Ahmed Khan, who were elected from Yakutpura and Charminar respectively in the 2018 elections.

The party has decided to field Jafar Hussain Meraj from Yakutpura. He was elected from Nampally in the previous election. Former Mayor of Hyderabad Mir Zulfeqar Ali will contest from Charminar. Another former Mayor Majid Hussain will contest from Nampally.

Top party leader and Asaduddin Owaisi’s brother Akbaruddin Owaisi will seek re-election from Chandrayangutta.

Similarly, the AIMIM retained Ahmed Balala from Malakpet, Kausar Mohiuddin from Karwan. The party will announce candidates for Bahadurpura, Jubilee Hills and Rajendra Nagar constituencies later.

AIMIM’s decision to contest Jubilee Hills is significant as the Congress party has fielded former Indian cricket captain Mohammed Azharuddin.

AIMIM, a friendly party of the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) had contested eight seats in 2018 but had not fielded a candidate from Jubilee Hills. It contested Jubilee Hills in 2014 and its candidate V. Naveen Yadav finished as a runner-up.

In Rajendra Nagar, AIMIM stood at the third position in the 2009, 2014 and 2018 elections.