Force behind MIM (Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen)
Zeeshan Shaikh
The All India
Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) won just two seats in the Maharashtra
assembly election, but even this limited success has attracted massive media
attention. The reaction to the MIM’s success has been mostly alarmist: many
fear that the Hyderabad-based party’s rise in Maharashtra could cause a tear in
our social fabric.
This concern is
genuine, considering the vitriolic speeches its leader, Akbaruddin Owaisi, made
during the campaign. However, the MIM did not grow in a vacuum. It fed off the
growing feeling of political disempowerment among Muslims and the realisation
that it was increasingly becoming difficult for a Muslim candidate to get
support outside his community.
This was not always
the case. Till 1985, Muslim politicians were getting elected from rural and
mixed population constituencies, including Shrivardhan, Ratnagairi, Amalner,
Ramtek, Kamptee, Jalna, Khed, Basmath, Akole, Akkalkot, Parbhani, Beed, Omerga,
Partur, Pathri and, once, even Bhavani Peth in Pune. Since 1990, the growing
communal schism has meant that a Muslim candidate is assured of a win only when
he stands from a Muslim-dominated constituency. Even this time, eight of the
nine Muslim MLAs have been elected from Muslim-dominated constituencies. The
exception is the NCP’s Hasan Mushrif, who won Kagal, a constituency in western
Maharashtra.
A look at the past
three assembly elections indicate that more than half the Muslim MLAs have been
elected from Mumbai constituencies, though Mumbai Muslims constitute only 21
per cent of the total Muslim population of Maharashtra. Votes polled by Muslim
candidates have also been steadily falling since 1990. For instance, the number
of votes polled by Muslim candidates came down from 18.7 lakh in 2004 to 17.5
lakh in 2009, though the size of the electoral group increased by 8.3 per cent.
In 2009, the average votes polled by a non-Muslim candidate was 13,766, while a
Muslim candidate attracted only 4,453 votes. Many parties point to these
figures as the reason why they refuse tickets to Muslim candidates. Many
politicians claim that putting up a Muslim candidate in a mixed population area
is a losing proposition. The fear that a Muslim candidate would polarise the
electorate and lead to the consolidation of non-Muslim votes meant that,
despite having a substantial presence in 40 assembly constituencies in the
state, only 45 Muslim candidates were put up by the five main political parties
in the 2014 election. In many cases, Muslim candidates were pitted against each
other.
However, the entry of
the MIM — 24 candidates, including four Dalits — into the electoral fray has
changed the picture. It contested constituencies in Aurangabad, Nanded and Solapur,
which has a substantial number of Muslim voters. Interestingly, mainstream
parties had shied away from fielding Muslim candidates in these constituencies
despite local demand, fearing it could lead to consolidation of non-Muslim
votes. Take the case of Aurangabad, which had a Muslim MLA till 1985. After the
Shiv Sena wrested the seat from the Congress following a communally charged
campaign in 1990, mainstream political parties refused to field a Muslim
there. The MIM broke the unspoken consensus and put up a Muslim candidate, who
won. The MIM presence has been reflected in the vote share as well. For the
first time in 15 years, the number of votes received by Muslim candidates
across the state has risen. While the sporadic vitriol that the MIM spews must
be criticised, we also need to be critical of political parties and voters who
have, in past elections, chosen to overlook the claims of certain candidates
only because they belonged to a particular faith.
zeeshan.shaikh@expressindia.com
(The Indian Express,
31 October 2014)
टिप्पणियाँ
एक टिप्पणी भेजें