KALABURAGI: The sudden demise of former minister and prominent Muslim Leader Qamarul Islam has come as a big blow to the Congress, especially in the Kalaburagi North Assembly constituency from where he was elected. The loss is all the more severe as it comes soon after the demise of senior politician and former CM N. Dharam Singh.
A six-term MLA and one-term Lok Sabha MP, Mr Islam had a strong grip over Muslim voters, especially in Kalaburagi City and neighbouring constituencies in the district. “Mr Islam was the undisputed and unchallenged Muslim leader in the city. As long as he was alive, the Kalaburagi North Assembly seat was a safe seat for the party and he could win it hands down. Also, his command over Muslim voters helped the party immensely in the Lok Sabha contest as well. Mr Islam’s demise has left a big void because there is no other Muslim leader who can match him in stature in the district unit of the party. But Mr Islam should also share the blame for creating a void because he never allowed a second rung leadership to grow. Though he had health-related problems during the last few years, he did not groom anyone as his successor,” a political analyst observed. Though Mr Islam was a senior leader, he did not try to become a leader of the Hyderabad Karnataka region.
“His politics was confined to Kalaburagi North seat (earlier Gulbarga City) and at the most, a few pockets of Muslim voters under Kalaburagi Lok Sabha constituency. He did not look beyond his constituency,” observers explained.
Mr Islam created ripples when he defeated veteran Congress leader Mohammed Ali, who was the Transport Minister in the Devaraj Urs Cabinet, in the 1978 Assembly election by contesting on the Indian Union Muslim League ticket. Initially he was a firebrand Muslim leader first in the IUML and subsequently in the Indian National League. After his defeats in the 1983 and 1985 Assembly elections at the hands of veteran Labour leader S.K. Kantha, Mr Islam never looked back. Mr Dharam Singh and Mr Mallikarjun Kharge recognized his usefulness and persuaded him to join the Congress. Mr Islam who was also looking for a broader political platform, lapped up the offer.
Although Mr Islam publicly acknowledged the leadership of Mr Kharge, in reality both of them were not on good terms with each other. “ Mr Islam, who considered himself to be the supreme leader of Muslims in the city, did not approve the grooming of any other Muslim leader. So when Mr Kharge started backing his classmate Mr Iqbal Ahmed Saradagi and made him Lok Sabha member and also MLC, it was strongly opposed by Mr Islam. The recent appointment of Mr Ilyas Bhagban as Chairman of North Western Road Transport Corporation (NWKRTC) was perceived by Mr Islam as a subtle move by Mr Kharge to replace him as the candidate for the Assembly seat. The differences between Mr Islam and Mr Kharge took a serious turn when Mr Islam was dropped from the Cabinet by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in June 2016. Squarely blaming Mr Kharge for his removal, Mr Islam had dared Mr Kharge to come out in the open and work against him. But Mr Kharge bought peace with Mr Islam, because he knew his potential”, an analyst observed.
