The Hindu : National : Battle for Bihar Muslim vote rises to a new high

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Feb 10, 2005

National

National

Battle for Bihar Muslim vote rises to a new high

By Venkitesh Ramakrishnan

NEW DELHI, FEB. 9. With hardly a week left for the second round of polling in Bihar, the battle for the Muslim minority vote between the ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Ram Vilas Paswan-led Lok Janshakthi Party (LJP) is fast becoming more and more intense. Both sides have pressed scores of leaders of the Muslim community, including Maulanas of powerful religious institutions, into this battle. Many of them are travelling across Bihar canvassing for the candidates they support.

There were suggestions within the media as well as among the political class after the first round of polling on February 3 that the near monopoly that the RJD had over the minority vote was breaking down. In many constituencies, including a few in the politically-sensitive Bhagalpur district, large sections of Muslims had openly preferred candidates of the Congress and the LJP.

According to senior RJD leaders, winning the battle for the minority vote has become most crucial for the party. ``One could say'', pointed out a Minister in the Rabri Devi Cabinet, ``that the minorities would decide one way or the other whether the RJD retains power or not.'' For the LJP too, which is trying to establish itself as a secular alternative in Bihar, the vote is important to boost its strength in the Assembly.

Support for RJD

Interestingly, leaders of two most important social Muslim organisations in North India have come out decidedly in favour of the RJD after the first round of polling, though these two groups do not see eye to eye on many social and religious issues. These leaders belong to the Deoband Darul Uloom and the Barelvi sect. Tauqir Raza Khan, a prominent Barelvi sect leader is virtually camping in Bihar. He is expected to address as many as 22 gatherings in support of the RJD before the campaign concludes on February 21. Talking to The Hindu over phone, Mr. Khan said that the commitment of the RJD and its chief, Lalu Prasad, to minority welfare is well recorded.

``It's possible,'' he added, ``that there have been some omissions and commissions in the RJD's overall governance, but I am telling voters that this is not the time to think about all that.'' According to Mr. Khan, the primary task now is to realise the danger from communal forces and protect secularism and communal harmony. A large number of Muslims in Bihar are considered to be followers of the Barelvi sect.

Anzar Shah Kashmiri, a Deoband Darul Uloom leader, has issued a statement exhorting Muslims to support the RJD, wherever the Congress does not have a winning candidate. Mr. Shah's statement says that the primary preference of the minorities at the national level is the Congress, but it does not have enough votes in many seats to defeat the communal BJP. The exhortation is clear: the community should not create a situation beneficial to the BJP and JD (U) through the division of votes.

The counter to the RJD campaign from the LJP and the Congress is through its set of Mualanas, including Moin Khan Iqbal of Allahabad and Muntezhar Qadri Akthar of Varanasi. According to the LJP spokesperson, Sanjay Singh, the very fact that the RJD has been forced to use religious leaders, despite claiming to have hegemony over the Muslim vote is indicative of the party's panic.

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