Fight for the ‘19%’ – UP meeting elections turns into a battleground of opposition events for Muslim votes

According to the 2011 census, the state of Uttar Pradesh had a complete inhabitants of virtually 20 crores, out of which round 3.8 crores belong to the Muslim neighborhood making it approx 19%. In 2011, round 64% of the entire inhabitants comprised of eligible voters. According to the Unique Identification Authority of India’s (UIDAI) 2020 inhabitants projection, Uttar Pradesh now has a inhabitants of approx 23 crores. Assuming the variety of eligible voters is similar at 64%, it comes out to be approx 14 crores. The complete assumed inhabitants of Muslims stands at approx 4.3 crores these days. If 64% of Muslims are eligible voters, i.e. at par with the state share, that comes out to be 2.7 crores.
The struggle for Muslim votes amongst opposition events
Traditionally, it’s believed that Muslims voters don’t vote for Bharatiya Janata Party in UP. It is obvious from the truth that within the India Today-Axis survey, 76% of Muslim voters in UP most well-liked the Samajwadi Party-Bahujan Samaj Party (SP-BSP) alliance in the course of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The most well-liked get together for Muslims isn’t BJP even supposing the get together works on the idea of “Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas”.
Notably, the BJP authorities led by CM Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh doesn’t discriminate amongst individuals of the state primarily based on faith. In March 2021, CM Yogi had stated that there isn’t a discrimination in UP primarily based on faith as 30 per cent of the welfare scheme beneficiaries are Muslims within the state. From housing schemes, free energy connections, free cooking gasoline to the Ayushman Bharat healthcare plan, Muslims have a better share within the listing of beneficiaries, stories recommend.
As the opposition events are conscious that Muslims hesitate to vote for BJP, they usually see them as the sport changers within the state. Though the inhabitants share stands at solely 19%, they’ll make a distinction, particularly on the seats the place the Muslim inhabitants is extra in comparison with different religions. SP, BSP, Congress, and different native events have been attempting to woo the Muslim voters for the upcoming elections, however their plans will not be fruitful as they anticipated as a result of entry of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) within the state.
AIMIM is attempting to turn into a nationwide get together
Recently, AIMIM chief Asaddudin Owaisi has introduced that his get together would contest 100 seats within the upcoming Assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh. In the final couple of years, AIMIM has been attempting to showcase its energy throughout India by contesting elections in several states. The intention seems to mission itself as a nationwide get together slightly than a state get together. In the Bihar elections, Owaisi gained 4 seats, and it gave him a lift to strive hand in different states as properly. The plan didn’t work in West Bengal, however in Uttar Pradesh, AIMIM thinks that they’ve an opportunity to win seats, particularly with a sizeable Muslim inhabitants.
AIMIM has additionally urged all events to order the Deputy Chief Minister put up for Muslims. AIMIM chief Asim Waqar had requested SP, BSP and Congress to make their stand clear on the problem. This ‘unexpected’ gameplay by AIMIM can hurt the Muslim vote share for the opposition events in UP who depend on the Muslim voters for the upcoming elections.
In a sequence of Tweets, AIMIM chief had hit out on opposition events for failing to win Zila Parishad chairman seats. Reportedly, the Bhartiya Janta Party has swept the polls successful 65 out of the entire 75 seats, whereas Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party bagged solely 6 seats.
उत्तर प्रदेश की एक सियासी पार्टी खुद को भाजपा का सबसे प्रमुख विपक्षी दल बताती है। ज़िला पंचायत के चुनाव में उनके 800 सदस्यों ने जीत दर्ज की थी, लेकिन अध्यक्ष के चुनाव में मात्र 5 अध्यक्ष की सीटों पर उनकी जीत हुई है ऐसा क्यों? क्या बाक़ी सदस्य भाजपा के गोद में बैठ गए हैं? 2/n— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) July 4, 2021
Owaisi stated regardless of of getting 19% inhabitants share, not even a single chairman seat was gained by a Muslim candidate. Without taking Akhilesh’s identify, he stated regardless of of claiming to be the most important opposition get together in UP, they solely gained 5 seats.
अब तो हमें एक नई सियासी तदबीर अपनाना ही होगा। जब तक हमारी आज़ाद सियासी आवाज़ नहीं होगी तब तक हमारे मसाइल हल नहीं होने वाले हैं। भाजपा से डरना नहीं है, बल्कि जम्हूरी तरीके से लड़ना है। n/n— Asaduddin Owaisi (@asadowaisi) July 4, 2021
He added, “Now we have to adopt a new political pattern. Unless we have a free political voice, our problems are not going to be resolved. Don’t be afraid of BJP, but fight in a strong way.”
BJP’s vote share in Uttar Pradesh
Interestingly, in keeping with the Election Commission of India, BJP had a vote share of approx 40% within the 2017 UP Assembly elections. The get together believes that it’ll have a slightly larger win in comparison with the 2017 elections within the state. CM Yogi has not too long ago reacted to AIMIM’s chief’s problem wherein he had stated AIMIM wouldn’t let him turn into CM once more.
Owaisi stated, “Inshallah, (we) will not allow Yogi (Adityanath) to become the chief minister of UP again. If our morale is high and we work hard, then everything will happen. Inshallah, our endeavour is that the BJP government is not formed in Uttar Pradesh.”
On July 3, Yogi Adityanath reacted to his assertion and stated Owaisi is a nationwide chief and he goes to completely different elements for campaigning. “If he has challenged the BJP, then the BJP worker accepts his challenge,” CM Yogi stated. He additional added, “The BJP will form the government, and there should be no doubt on this.” Notably, within the Lok Sabha elections 2020, BJP alone had gained 62 seats out of 80 within the state.
The assault in on SP greater than BJP
One extra thrilling facet of the upcoming elections by way of Muslim voters is that each BSP and AIMIM are usually not focusing on BJP. Their foremost goal is Akhilesh Yadav-led SP. Owaisi has not too long ago known as SP an “anti-Muslim” get together. Mayawati, chief of BSP, who allied with SP for Lok Sabha elections in 2019, is on the mission to ‘destroy’ SP. So a lot so, Mayawati, at one level, had introduced that her get together is able to kind an alliance with BJP in UP to make sure SP doesn’t win. However, she did a u-turn on her assertion and now needs to mission BSP because the ‘only’ alternative for upcoming elections. As a outcome, she has been attacking each get together in her statements.
Aam Aadmi Party’s noisy blame-game
Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party can be planning to contest UP elections. As a approach of degrading BJP’s picture within the eyes of voters, the get together is indulging in half-baked rumour-mongering.
Another false impression is that the procurement was performed with out following the tender course of. That can be not true. The costs had been found by means of an open and clear bidding course of by MLN Medical College Prayagraj.— Alok Kumar 🇮🇳 (@IasAlok) July 4, 2021
From baseless allegations of a land rip-off in Ram Mandir land acquisition to the half-baked allegations of a rip-off in ventilator buy, evidently the get together would proceed to make baseless allegations simply to maintain BJP leaders busy countering them. Recently, AAP MP Sanjay Singh additionally met Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav that raised a number of eyebrows.
The upcoming UP Assembly elections
Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections are nonetheless approx 9 months away. It is simply too early to invest what can be the results of the elections however proudly owning to the present situation, it appears the elections wouldn’t be simple for any get together. The latest win for BJP within the Zila Parishad elections gave some constructive hope to the BJP chief. However, the faux information and rumours must curbed at their preliminary stage if BJP needs to extend its vote share within the state.