Exasperated with the non-BJP parties calling a vote-cutter and saffron party’s B-team, All India Majlis Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has put the Congress and NCP in dilemma by offering to join hands with the two parties “to defeat the BJP and communal forces” in Maharashtra.

It is said NCP leader and Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope visited Aurangabad Lok Sabha MP Imtiaz Jaleel to condole the death of a close relative. The MIM leader had hinted at forming an alliance with the NCP at the condolence meeting. He said all non-BJP parties want Muslim votes but nobody is willing to ally with Owaisi's party.

“"Tope visited me on Friday, days after lost my mother due to an illness. It is always alleged that BJP wins because of us (AIMIM - due to splitting of Muslim votes). To prove this allegation wrong I proposed to Tope that we are ready for an alliance. However, he didn't say anything about my offer," Jaleel had told media persons on Friday.

Two of the three constituents of the Maha Vikas Aghadi government - Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress have reacted to MIM’s willingness to join them in their fight against BJP in 2024 parliamentary elections.

Maharashtra NCP chief Jayant Patil replied to Jaleel’s overtures saying, the Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party lost several seats in the just-concluded Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. He asked AIMIM to prove its real intentions of joining hands with other parties through actions.

While Shiv Sena Sena ruled out the possibility of such an alliance. The Sena MP Sanjay Raut said, "We cannot imagine forming an alliance with AIMIM. Moreover, there's a secret pact between Owaisi's party and BJP."