Twelve Muslims will be contesting on BJP tickets in coming civic body polls across state. Of these, two Muslim candidates will contest in Ahmedabad, seven in Jamnagar, one in Rajkot and two in Surat.

Retired IPS officer AI Saiyed will contest from the newly constituted Sarkhej ward. Saiyed had joined the BJP during the Lok Sabha elections last year and was one of the campaigners in the Kathlal bypoll.

The other Muslim candidate in Ahmedabad is Wasim Saiyed, a telephone booth operator who has been with the BJP for over three years and will contest from Rajpur ward. BJP sources said that this was for the first time that the party has given tickets to Muslims in the city.

Seven Muslim candidates contesting on BJP ticket in Jamnagar are:Baloch Saydaben Iqbalbhai, Anvar Noormohammad Sandhar, Ishaqbhai Yakubbhai Aub, Bharkhani Abdul Ismail, Gandhi Salim Taherali, Qureshi Shakinaben Rehmanbhai, and Mohammad Akbar H Gajia.

In Rajkot Bibiben Habibbhai Sama is only Muslim candidate to contest on BJP ticket. In Surat two Muslim candiates Zakir Hussain Shah, and Shaydaben Sheikh are in fray on BJP ticket.

Earlier, BJP had given tickets to four candidates in Junagadh, however, the experiment did not work and all Muslim candidates of BJP lost the election.