By Ahmed Mohiuddin Siddiqui,
The Hyderabad-based All India Majlis Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) has entered the electoral battle in Maharashtra in a big way by declaring Muslim and Dalit candidates in 20 Assembly constituencies. Majlis is making its debut and fancy its chances in multi cornered contests after the two major alliances – Congress-Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) decided to part ways.
The party is trying to cash in on despair and anger among Muslims with the low performance of Congress-NCP regime in the state in last 10 years.
It may be recalled that a large number of Muslim youths are languishing in jails across Maharashtra on alleged charges of terrorism. Even though some youths especially in the Malegaon bomb blast case have been exonerated by the court after the nabbing of the alleged culprits from Sangh parivar by the National Investigating Agency (NIA), the Government of Maharashtra led by the Congress-NCP has done little to alleviate their sufferings. The Mumbra girl Ishrat Jahan encounter has dented the confidence of the minorities regarding their security. The Dhule communal riot saw the alleged cops looting the shops owned by Muslims. The Srikrishna Commission report on the aftermath of the Babri Masjid destruction and the communal riots that followed was not tabled in the Legislative Assembly and no action was taken against the arsonists and murderers.
It is against this back drop that Majlis is foraying into Maharashtra to increase the representation of the minorities. There is not a single Muslim member of Lok Sabha from Maharashtra. The Muslims have tried and believed in the false promises of the secular junta all these years. Majlis wants to fill the space generated. It has struck a chord with the Dalits too and fielded three of them for the Assembly polls. A prize catch is that of the former Transport Minister Gangadhar Gade, a prominent dalit leader from Aurangabad. The legendary singer Mohammed Rafi’s son Shahid Rafi will sing to Majlis’ tune from the Mumbadevi Assembly constituency.
The Maharashtra unit Samajwadi Party (SP) president Abu Asim Azmi will find the going tough with the Majlis fielding candidate in his constituency too as the electorate has seen the ‘love’ and ‘concern’ of the SP in Muzaffarnagar recently. The SP-BJP jugalbandi is there for all to see.
The Majlis supremo Asaduddin Owaisi and his much maligned brother Akbaruddin Owaisi are attracting huge crowds in their public meetings in Mumbai and other places. It remains to be seen whether Majlis will damage the Sangh parivar or the Gandhi parivar the most. If it enters the 288-member Maharashtra Assembly, first time outside Andhra Pradesh, will be known on 19th Oct when the votes will be counted. The state is going to polls on 15th Oct.
