Rama Krishna Sangem
Congress party’s high command is focusing on wooing Muslim votes in Telangana. The party has ensured the same vote bank in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh now turned its attention to Telangana, a crucial state for it to win on November 30 election. Muslim minorities account for about 15 per cent on an average in the entire state while some seats have high presence of them.
Sources in Congress’ war room in Hyderabad told Excel India that leaving the eight seats where AIMIM is contesting, Muslims are free to decide whom to vote – between the ruling BRS and Congress. Even among the eight constituencies where AIMIM is in the fray, Congress is hoping to win Nampally seat where its maverick Mohammed Feroz Khan is testing his luck. Khan lost to AIMIM last time in 2018.
Besides Khan, Congress has fielded Mohammed Shabbir Ali from Nizamabad Urban and Mohammed Azharuddin, former Indian cricket captain from Jubilee Hills and counting on their win. An internal communication from AICC headquarters in Delhi, some efforts are on to secure a directive from Muslim clergy from Delhi to influence Muslims of Telangana to vote for Congress so as to defeat BJP. But there is no final word on this yet.
Whether this strategy works out or not, Telangana Congress leaders are striving to woo Muslims outside Hyderabad city to their side. Congress leaders are aware that most pockets of Muslims like in Nalgonda, Karimnagar, Muthole and Nizamabad are divided between BRS and Congress. BRS chief and CM KCR enjoys greater clout among Muslims due to his popular Shadi Mubakark and welfare schemes.
Religion or welfare?
This leaves Muslims with a dilemma – whether to vote as per a pan national sentiment of defeating BJP by choosing Congress or opting for a party that lavishes welfare schemes in the last nine years. A Congress war room analyst told me that Muslims are particularly angry with PM Modi for his strident Hindutwa postures. The only way to teach him a lesson is to vote for Congress, not otherwise, explained he, not willing to be quoted.
This is the case, BRS may lose out Muslim votes, even where it enjoys there traditional support. But, in seats where a Muslim is BRS candidate, Congress may not get any Muslim support. For example, Bodhan BRS MLA Mohammed Shakeel Amir is fighting for a hat trick win this time against his two time rival Congress former minister Sudharshan Reddy from here.
Of course, AIMIM’s Asaduddin Owaisi comes to the rescue of BRS. Owaisi has already announced that his party would support KCR wherever AIMIM is not in the fray. Local AIMIM units will be pressed into action to campaign for BRS candidates. Congress is mostly banking on a nation wide appeal among Muslims that they would vote for the party, mainly to show BJP its place. If not fully, even a fraction of their votes will come to Congress, feels it s war room analyst .
Muslims play major role in tilting scales in at least 15-18 seats outside of Old city of Hyderabad in Telangana.
