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Tuesday, November 11, 2008
The Muslim Third Front in Maharashtra is welcome!
By Ghulam Muhammed
The news that ‘Muslims to form third front for upcoming polls’ in Maharashtra, is a moment for the history. In the last sixty years of India’s independence, only two incidence of political courage by Muslim can be cited as true coming of age of Muslim consciousness. One was the success of Maulana Badruddin Ajmal’s United Democratic Front winning 10 MLA seats in Assam, directly challenging Congress hold over Muslim voters. It was certainly a liberating first to challenge the oligarchy of Congress that has enslaved Muslim voters by any number of ruses and reduced the proud community to be lowest of low, in all aspect of human existence. The second success can easily be identified with Maulana Ismail’s confident winning streak in Malegaon that got it largest number of seats in the corporation elections, though short of majority to form a government. Both the historical firsts did not succeed to claim outright victory of their initial efforts; but then Rome is not built in a day. Those who have analysed the basics of the success of the two Third Front efforts, are convinced there is no going back. The beginners have tasted blood and they cannot be held back now, come what may. No doubt, it is time for change, borrowing from the wind blowing from Obama country. The old guards had made a mess of the country. New efforts to form new alliances and new vision of what should be the standard of justice, fairplay, human bonding, and of a life not given to obsessive corruption and therefore criminal pursuits.
It will be interesting to note two more efforts around the country at this very moment in time to form third front collage with Muslim participation or leadership at the helm. Last week, CPM, CPI, Dev Gouda’s Janata Dal, Mayawati’s BSP gathered at a modest Aiwan e Ghalib to begin the long journey to form a front against the two ‘Brahminical’ formations that pose as the owners of the land. A second gathering of 6000 Ulama in Hyderabad too was in essence groping for associations to hesitantly enter the political arena, flaunting the many entanglements that keep them tied down in their present helpless disposition. Both in my thinking are laboured attempts and may take a very long, very long runway to take up the speed and thrust to be airborne. In comparison, Maulana Badruddin’s leadership is more well-defined, more direct, more confident and it is flexible enough not to be bogged down in self-inflicted fixations on the organizational or bureaucratic or even ideological minefields.
The road ahead is long and the Maharashtra oligarchs will band together to give a fitting fight, not to let any ‘outsider’ poach on their turf. But the insider crowd flocking to the alternative of Third Front is enough to project the fundamental flaws in the existing makeup of the political formations in the state, whose monopoly is based on brute and cruel inhuman treatment of its people who have given them their trust for a long long time. All of them have betrayed that trust and run roughshod over the people, with open public disdain and arrogance. It is time for a change.
Welcome Muslim Third Front in Maharashtra!
Ghulam Muhammed, Mumbai
ghulammuhammed3@gmail.com
www.ghulammuhammed.wordpress.com
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From: The Times of India, Mumbai
Muslims to form third front for upcoming polls
S Balakrishnan I TNN
Mumbai: Efforts are being made to form a third front to protect the interests of Muslims in Maharashtra. Badruddin Ajmal, a city-based businessman, who successfully formed a third front in Assam and managed to get as many as 10 MLAs elected, told TOI on Monday: “I am speaking to various groups. In fact, I am looking at a front of not only Muslims, but also of others who want a third front.’’
Farid Batatawala, an activist, said: “Muslims are upset with the Congress-NCP alliance in Maharashtra for a number of reasons. The other alternative, the Shiv Sena-BJP combine, is also not acceptable to them. Under the circumstances, a serious effort is being made to find a third alternative.’’ Of the 288 assembly seats, there are at least 50 seats where Muslims can play a decisive role if they vote en bloc.
Farid Shaikh, secretary of the Bombay Aman Committee, a Muslim NGO, said: “Actually, we want to unite with all genuinely secular forces and form a third front. We refuse to be used as a vote bank anymore.’’ Advocate Majeed Memon, who is national secretary of the NCP, said: “It will be unfortunate if Muslims think in terms of forming a political party exclusively for their community. The welfare of Muslims lies in joining the secular mainstream.’’
Nawab Malik, senior MLA and former minister, said: “The handling of certain issues by the government has created considerable disquiet in the community. A glaring case is that of the ATS’ handling of the 7/11 Mumbai train blasts,’’ he said. “When those arrested by the crime branch in connection with the blasts in Ahmedabad are admitting that they were behind the 7/11 blasts, the government should have the guts to admit their mistake and take action against the policemen who wrongly booked innocent Muslim youths. A public admission of wrongdoing will be appreciated.’’
There is also a growing demand to probe the mysterious death of ACP Vishnu Bhatt, a member of the ATS which was probing the 7/11 blasts, who allegedly committed suicide in August 2006. “Apparently, Bhatt ended his life, unable to cope with the pressure to book innocent Muslims in the blasts,’’ an MLA alleged.
A Congress activist said that party MLA Arif Naseem Khan had to wage a legal battle and move the SC to get the government to implement the Justice Srikrishna Commission report, which probed the communal riots of 1992-93. “Even then the report is not being implemented in toto,’’ the activist said. The Khwaja Yunus case has also angered the community. “Till date, no one knows the fate of Khwaja, who was picked up and tortured for his alleged role in the blasts,’’ a former police official said.
balakrishnan.s@timesgroup.com
