UP assembly elections: Why Muslim vote is beyond the qazi’s call

BIJNOR/SAHARANPUR: As the campaign heats up in western UP, where voters in 140 constituencies spread over 26 districts will cast their ballots on February 11 and 15, there’s speculation over how Muslims will vote this time.

In the battle for Muslim votes, who form 19 per cent UP’s population (32 per cent urban, 16 per cent rural), Mayawati’s BSP has 99 candidates from the community, the party’s highest so far.


The SP’s fielded 56. BJP doesn’t have a single Muslim nominee in its list of 370 declared so far. In west UP, the proportion of Muslims (26 per cent) is higher than in the state as a whole.

In Muslim-dominated districts such as Rampur, Moradabad, Amroha, Saharanpur and Bijnor, the proportion goes up substantially, touching a high of almost 70 per cent in Sambhal. Add to that, several communities here are bi-religious. Tyagis, Jats and Gujjars are found among both Hindus and Muslims.

“Contrary to perception, Muslims don’t vote en masse and there’s no fi rman (diktat) issued at jamaats (religious meetings) announcing support for a party or candidate,” says Saharanpur sheher qazi Nadeem Akhtar, a convent-educated bibliophile who earned degrees in management and law but chose the path of religion.

“Had we always voted en bloc, how come not a single Muslim MP was elected in UP in 2014 LS polls?” Khan Zafar Sultan, an infl uential Jat Muslim from Bijnor who works for the Rashtriya Lok Dal, explains, “It’s a misconception arising out of isolation of the minorities and their ghettoisation. Since most Muslims come from deprived sections, they share common concerns and might well vote in large numbers for a Muslim candidate. But their votes get split too. Parties that have long used them as vote banks, make conscious efforts to divide their votes.”

That’s a concern among Muslims across western UP, where BSP has fielded most of its minority candidates in an apparent bid to take advantage of the demographics.

In certain seats, Mayawati’s nominees look certain to give a tough fight. In Thanabhawan (Abdul Rao Waris), Charthawal (Noor Salim Rana), Meerut South (Yaqoob Qureshi) and Agra South (Zulfi qar Ali Bhutto) her nominees look strong.

A scholar at a prominent west UP Islamic seminary believes consolidation of minority votes is bound to happen for the SP-Congress alliance.

“There’s fear of the BJP… Right wing groups played a role in almost all attacks on minorities — murder of Graham Staines and his children (1999), 2002 Gujarat riots, 2013 Muzaffarnagar violence, etc.

Some tactical voting is inevitable. But this happens because of psychosocial reasons, it is a complex phenomenon,” he says, adding, “With aggressive statements targeting the community, BJP netas create an environment of fear that serves to unify Muslims.” But are clerics this time going to speak for and against certain parties? Bijnor sheher qazi Tahil Ali says that would be counterproductive.

“Even if somebody thinks of using a religious podium to influence voters, consolidation of Muslim votes will come at a cost — the counter-consolidation of Hindu votes, who are in majority. Politics is best left to people’s discretion.”

Ali’s brother Mohammad Athar, an advocate, feels Akhilesh Yadav has emerged from the family feud stronger and as the voters’ favourite across sections. “He has an unblemished image and talks of development. His appeal goes beyond Muslim and Yadav vote banks,” Athar says. Similar sentiments were echoed by Muslims across west UP who feel the alliance with Congress only strengthens the SP’s chances.

“If community votes don’t split, the SP-Congress alliance might just do the trick,” says Abid Ali, a dhaba owner in Rampur Maniharan town of Saharanpur.