UP polls 2017: Muslim outfits join hands to prevent division of votes

Lucknow: Eight fledgling political outfits, having a limited base among Muslims in Uttar Pradesh, are coming together to prevent division of secular votes in the state.

The move could have a definite impact on parties like the Samajwadi party and BSP that are basing their calculations on Muslim support for the upcoming assembly elections in the state.

The eight parties that are coming together are Peace Party, Rashtriya Ulama Council, Parcham Party, Muslim Majlis, Social Democratic Party of India, Welfare Party of India, Muslim Mahaj  and the Indian Muslim League. Talks with the AIMIM are under way and the party is also expected to join the group.

The initiative is the brainchild of Ismail Batliwala who is the national president of All India Muslim Mahaj and the convener of Political Unity Campaign. Mr Batliwala belongs to Siddhartha Nagar district in UP but is now settled in Mumbai.

According to Dr Mateen, state president of the Indian Muslim League, two meetings with leaders of these political parties have been held and another major meeting is scheduled to be held on July 19 in which the modalities of the new front with be worked out.

“The Muslim population in UP, according to the 2011 Census is 3.84 crore which is about 19 per cent of the total population. Districts having a sizeable Muslim population are 38 and the state assembly has 64 Muslim legislators. The Samajwadi Party has the maximum Muslim MLAs at 43. Yet, issues related to Muslims remain unsolved because the Muslim legislators are bound to party lines,” he explained.

According to the leader, the need for a political conglomerate with Muslims in focus was felt because in the past two years, Muslim have been on the firing line after the Muzaffarnagar riots even though the community bore the brunt of the violence.

The political outfits coming together to form the new front have mutually agreed on seat sharing according to their areas of influence but will campaign jointly.

A Peace Party leader said that a joint campaign would not only instill confidence among Muslim voters who feel the need to evolve their own leadership rather than depend on non-Muslims to address their concerns.

The move to form a joint Muslim front, meanwhile, could spell trouble for parties that are depending on Muslim votes to form the next government.

The SP, for instance, is worried at the development but its leaders dismissed the move as ‘inconsequential’. “Such parties appear during elections and then disappear because voters never trust them,” said a party leader.