Will 'vote jihad' help MVA win in Aurangabad?

November 14, 2024 12:05

Imtiaz Jalil (left) with his family

Zameer Sheikh, an auto-driver in his 50s, makes no bones about his wish to see the opposition MVA in power in Maharashtra. He is no less sure about his preference in his Aurangabad East constituency -- it is Asaduddin Owaisi-led AIMIM.

In this one-time capital of the erstwhile Nizam-ruled region, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) is drawing significant support from Muslims, who are in large numbers in the city, as it pursues its ambition to emerge as the community's voice across the state. Two of the 16 seats of the 288-member assembly the party is contesting falls in what is now officially named as Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar.

Its former MP Imtiaz Jaleel, who came second in the Lok Sabha elections, is fighting from Aurangabad East, while its candidate from Aurangabad Central is Naser Siddiqui. Sitting in his office, the party's district president and builder Sameer Sajid brushes aside queries about division in Muslim votes helping the ruling 'Mahayuti' after their consolidation in the Lok Sabha poll helped the Maha Vikas Aghadi score a big win.

"We did not contest in Haryana. Did the Congress win?" he said, while noting that the AIMIM is contesting on only 16 seats against 52 in 2019. Many Muslims laud the decision, saying it will ensure that their votes are not split. Though Sajid takes pains to paint the Congress and its allies as "chhupe hue Bhajpayi" (hidden BJP) as he accuses them of trying to finish off the political representation on Muslims by not giving them poll tickets, many observers ascribe the AIMIM's decision to contest on fewer seats to its wish to not harm the prospects of the MVA outside its pockets of influence.

Nilesh Patil, a BJP worker who has just returned from the campaign of sitting Aurangabad East MLA Atul Save, says his party alleges "vote jihad" for this very reason that Muslims may vote for any party but will always unite against his.

Joined by other workers, he claims that the local Congress candidate Lahuji Shewale is making little efforts to put up a strong fight. Shewale is seen as a surprise choice by the Congress and political observers believe that his OBC background might have helped him.

A cross-section of Muslims say their preference for the AIMIM was due to its vocal airing of their issues and grievances at a time when parties like the Congress have been on the defensive in the face of the BJP's resonant plank of Hindutva.

Not a single Muslim was fielded in the Lok Sabha polls by the MVA, Sajid notes. The party with its roots in Hyderabad also appeals to a hardline Muslim identity.

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