Hijab is our dignity, a personal choice: Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator

Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator Saba Haroon Khan defended the hijab as a matter of dignity, with support from her father MLA Haroon Khan. This comes as the Mahayuti alliance won the Maharashtra civic polls, ending the Thackeray family's dominance.

Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator Saba Haroon Khan on Wednesday defended the practice of wearing the hijab, calling it a matter of dignity and personal choice. Speaking to ANI here, Saba Haroon Khan said the hijab represents dignity for Muslim women and should not be politicised. "Hijab is our dignity. You can see North Indians covering half of their face with a dupatta as well. Similarly, this is our dignity showing we are Muslims," she said, adding that people from various communities cover their heads.

Reacting to his daughter's choice of wearing the hijab, Shiv Sena (UBT) MLA Haroon Khan said she has always worn the hijab, including during elections, without any objections earlier. He asserted that such issues need not be raised unnecessarily. "She has always been in hijab, even through the elections, but nobody had an issue. Even the people who voted for her did not have an issue. Issues related to hijab should not be raised. If voters don't have an issue, then why will anyone else have an issue," he said. Notably, Saba Haroon Khan had won the civic polls from Versova's Ward No 64 by 3,768 votes.

Mahayuti Sweeps Maharashtra Civic Polls

Meanwhile, Former Mayor Kishori Pednekar was elected as the leader of Shiv Sena UBT corporators today. She secured victory in the Mumbai Municipal Corporation election from Ward No. 199, defeating Rupal Kusale of the Shiv Sena (Shinde faction).

It comes days after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its Mahayuti allies swept the Maharashtra civic elections, winning 25 of 29 municipal corporations, including the prestigious Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). This marks a significant shift in power, ending the Thackeray family's nearly three-decade dominance over the BMC.

The Mahayuti alliance crossed the majority mark of 114 in the 227-member BMC, securing 118 seats. BJP emerged as the single largest party with 89 seats. Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) won 29 seats. Shiv Sena (UBT) secured 65 seats and led the opposition. Congress won 24 seats. AIMIM made notable inroads with 8 seats in Mumbai and 114 statewide; MNS won 6 seats.

On the other side, the Shiv Sena (UBT), contesting in alliance with the MNS, won 65 seats. The UBT-led Sena polled 7,17,736 votes, accounting for 13.13 per cent of the total votes cast. The MNS added 6 seats to the alliance tally, with 74,946 votes and a 1.37 per cent vote share.

The Indian National Congress (INC) secured 24 seats, polling 2,42,646 votes, which represents 4.44 per cent of the total vote share. (ANI)

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)