By Saiyed Danish, TwoCircles.net,
New Delhi: Aam Aam Party is forming its first government in Delhi today. Despite all the efforts of mainstream parties of showing them as underdogs, the party secured 28 seats creating history and making its way to the hearts of the rejuvenated urban middle class and poor vote bank checkmating the two prime national parties of India in the recent assembly polls.
AAP had given tickets to six Muslim candidates, including Shazia Ilmi from RK Puram. However, none of the candidates could win. Ilmi lost by a narrow margin of 326 votes. Further, none of the AAP candidates from any of the Muslim dominated constituencies won, although in the Okhla Assembly constituency, AAP’s Irfanullah Khan emerged as the first runner up. That clearly showed little reluctance on part of Muslims to come out in open support of a new party. Muslims it should be pointed out remained with the Congress as four out eight Congress MLAs who won are from Muslims, and the fifth one won from Chandani Chowk, that too has sizeable Muslim votes.
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(AAP banner in Urdu)
As Arvind Kejriwal is taking oath as Delhi’s 5th Chief Minister on today, TCN spoke to the Muslim intelligentsia, political and religious groups, activists and individuals to gaze the mood in Delhi on what this Santa Claus of the fresh hopes may or may not have in store for India’s largest minority in the haversack of its lofty promises, not to mention water for all in 24 hours and Lokpal in 15 days.
When it comes to individuals and political parties with Muslim character and Islamic organizations, there appears to be a clash of opinions and positions on the party which took Delhi by storm almost three weeks ago.
Among prominent Muslim activists, the name of Firoz Bakht Ahmad always comes up. He joined AAP weeks before the Assembly elections, but was not very active during campaign, due to poor health. He states that Congress party has been cajoling Muslims due to which the community has been distancing themselves from it slowly but surely.
Poster of AAP candidate from RK Puram, Shazia Ilmi who lost by narrow margin.
“As AAP is a party that has been still evolving, all its policies are being positively drafted for all the sections of society including Muslims as well. AAP’s stand on reservations, Communal Violence Bill, Muzaffarnagar riots has been quite sensible,” he says.
Notwithstanding with Bakht’s views, Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) has refused to get enchanted by Kejriwal’s austerity statements before swearing-in and out-rightly rejects any chance of working with the party.
“Aam Aadmi Party is purely insensitive towards Muslim issues and aspirations and reeks of right-wing tendency somewhere in its fabric. We can never think of supporting a party which has no sympathy with the Muslim issues. Reservation is a burning issue but did the party speak of it ever even in Delhi?” asks Advocate Sharfuddin Ahmad, National General Secretary of SDPI.
While comparing Kejriwal’s cult image in the party with the American hegemony in the world, Sharfuddin said, “What is Kejriwal’s opinion becomes people’s opinion. How can we side with a leader with this kind of totalitarian nature?”
SDPI put up a considerable fight in Karnataka assembly elections which it contested on 13 seats, whereas only one candidate contested in Delhi polls on the party ticket, and lost miserably in an election that clearly had ‘AAP wave.’
Likewise, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) Delhi Chief Khurram Anis Omer, who also contested assembly polls from Okhla seat, has little faith in AAP’s commitment to serve as a strong government.
“AAP will run a lame government as there are contradictory views itself in the party. As far as Muslim issues are concerned, I don’t think he has done or said anything regarding that. The party has no stand on reservations, communal violence bill whatsoever and has never visited Muzaffarnagar even once in these three months,” he said.
However, on supporting AAP in the future he said that it is for the party to decide and circumstances can only tell.
File Photo of AAP leader Yongendra Yadav and Prashant Bushan during a campaign in Babarpur.
There are, however, several other organizations and individuals which hope that so far AAP focused on and in the Lok Sabha elections, it will address Muslim grievances as well.
Advocate Naushad Ahmad Khan, who originally hails from Muzaffarnagar and practices in the Supreme Court, too believes that AAP could emerge as an alternative to not only the two main national parties, but also as an option against what he terms as ‘opportunistic regional parties.’ Advocate Khan has recently joined AAP, and he says that he is willing to contest the coming Lok Sabha elections if the party so desires from anywhere in UP.
Zafarul Islam Khan, Vice President of Welfare Party of India and president All India Muslim Majlise Mushawart, is positive about the fact that finally a party has come which has challenged the political monopoly of the Congress as well as the BJP.
“I met Kejriwal personally as he had visited our party office and I am certain that they will perform better next time so far as Muslim support is concerned. We should not come to a hasty conclusion on this matter as they have taken up the issue of corruption this time. We both spoke over Muslim issues and I asked that something much be done on Muslim question as that is equally important,” he told TCN. WPI did not contest the Delhi elections.
On behalf of All India Muslim Majalis e Mushawarat (AIMMM) President, Khan added, “As far as AIMMM is concerned, the umbrella body of all Muslim organizations feel that he should lend ears to Muslims and expand their visits to Muslim areas so to know their issues and to focus better.”
Another major Muslim organization Jamaat e Islami Hind have extended its support to AAP and its All India President said that the victory of Aam Aadmi Party has filled the political vacuum and the parties which gorge upon Muslim vote banks need to alert themselves now and people are veering towards other alternatives. JIH support to AAP post their excellent performance is significant since before the Assembly elections, they had issued statement favouring Congress and warned the voters to refrain from dividing Muslim votes that would eventually help BJP.
However, Jamiat e Ulema e Hind, another leading organization representing Muslims, has refrained from commenting on Aam Aadmi Party for the time being. “We are yet to sit and talk about the prospects of AAP on what will be our official stand on the party. It is doing some good job but declaring something now is not a farsighted approach,” said Abdul Hameed Noumani, media in charge of JUH.
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