With rivals like the Samajwadi Party (SP), Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Asaduddin Owaisi’s AIMIM, the Congress is worried about vote-sharing in some seats in the minority bastion in Uttarakhand. A section in the Congress says that it feels that the presence of more than one Muslim candidate in a constituency is an attempt to weaken the party.
Though only two sitting Congress MLAs are in the fray from Haridwar district, Asaduddin Owaisi’s All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), SP and BSP together have given 18 tickets to Muslim candidates in Haridwar district and elsewhere.
Congress state general secretary MD Joshi says, “Despite all this, voters are aware. They know why there are seasonal parties in the state and whom to help.
A closer look at the list of candidates reveals that the AIMIM, which has entered the state politics for the first time, has fielded four candidates in Haridwar (Rural), Haldwani, Khatima and Kichha constituencies. The SP has given maximum 11 tickets to Muslims in Haridwar (Rural), Peeran Kaliyar and Haldwani. However, the BSP has fielded three Muslim candidates in Haridwar district, one each in Haridwar (Rural), Laksar and Mangalore seats.
Why minority votes matter
Muslims constitute 14% of the population of Uttarakhand, most of whom live in Haridwar district. Apart from this, they have substantial presence in Udham Singh Nagar district and also in some areas of Nainital and Dehradun districts.
Between the BSP and the SP, the latter never won a seat in the state assembly. However, BSP has a good hold on some seats in Haridwar district. In the past, the Dalit-Muslim alliance had helped the BSP win two or four seats in Haridwar alone. Amid a strong Modi wave, Mayawati’s party failed to win a single seat in 2017 but garnered a little over 7% of the vote.
Interestingly, all SP, BSP and AIMIM have given tickets to Muslim candidates in Haridwar (Rural) seat from where Congress poster boy Harish Rawat’s daughter Anupama Rawat is contesting. Haridwar (Rural) has a large Muslim voter base and it is believed that the BSP’s Muslim candidate was the reason behind Harish Rawat’s defeat from this seat in the 2017 elections.
Two other important seats to watch out for are Khatima and Haldwani. Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is contesting from Khatima, which has a mix of mixed voters. AIMIM is also contesting from Khatima, giving sleepless sleep to the Congress. Sumit, son of late Leader of Opposition Indira Hridayesh, is contesting from Haldwani seat on a Congress ticket. Rivals SP and AIMIM have pitted Muslim candidates against Sumit in Haldwani, which has over 30,000 Muslim voters. In fact, AIMIM candidate Matin Siddiqui, who is considered a strong leader, has recently left the Congress.
AIMIM state president Nayyar Kazmi said that the party has fielded candidates keeping in mind all the calculations.
“We are here to make a presence felt and not to eat someone’s vote. We are working hard on the four seats on which AIMIM is contesting.
“The Congress will get votes on its credibility”, says three-time Congress MLA Qazi Nizamuddin, who is facing another Muslim candidate of the BSP in Mangalore constituency of Haridwar district.
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