AIMIM in Pratapgarh fray, looks beyond Muslim votes

Pratapgarh: The lone All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) candidate contesting UP bypolls is not just eyeing Muslim votes, he is working overtime to bring Dalits and Christians on board too.

Israr Ahmed, fielded by Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM from Pratapgarh-Sadar, is working hard to align Dalits and Christians with Muslims to beat the BJP-Apna Dal combine candidate.

He has already managed to garner the support of local Ambedkar Sabha.

“I am contesting election to fight for the downtrodden and to carve a better future for them. My commitment is not restricted to Muslims, but is for Dalits and Christians as well,” Ahmed told TOI after speaking at a meeting of religious leaders recently.

Aiming to win over SCs and STs, Ahmed said Pratapgarh can be a case study of atrocities on dalits, adding: “All political parties seek dalit and Muslim votes, but forget them after winning election. Even the so called dalit well-wishers like BSP chief Mayawati have failed their community. BSP leadership, in fact, used dalits to become political czars, but the everyday struggle of ordinary dalit still remains the same.”

Recalling the gruesome incident of a young dalit boy being burnt alive for refusing to take orders of a local muscleman, Ahmed said, “No one stood for that boy, but now someone has come forward to stand by them.”

The 48-year-old transporter accused BJP government of harassing Muslim youths. “While fake encounters are an undeniable fact in UP, Muslim boys have become sitting ducks for greedy cops who extort money from their families,” he added.

Ahmed went on to claim that Muslims and dalits are in agony and will be the driving force for his victory, but political experts feel he might end up dividing Muslim votes which will benefit BJP.

“Of the 3.36 lakh voters in the constituency, about 15% are Muslims. But within the community, a large segment supports Samajwadi Party. Congress is also making effort to woo Muslims. In all, there is high possibility of Muslim votes getting split which will end up benefiting BJP,” said Chandan Singh, a local political analyst.

On being asked why AIMIM fielded only one candidate, party spokesperson Ajmal Khan said, “We are a very young party in UP and have just started building our organisation in the state. But in Pratapgarh, we have enough members to take the political plunge, therefore, a humble beginning has been made.”