Dalit and Muslim representation in Maharashtra elections: How much on paper, how much on ground

The Maharashtra elections are a contest between the Mahayuti and the Maha Vikas Aghadi. In the midst of this, AIMIM and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi, who claim to be the leaders of the Dalit-Muslim or Bahujan community, are looking for their place.

Mumbai: Maharashtra elections 2024 have reached their final stages. Voting is to be held on November 20, while November 23 will be the day of results. The politics of Maharashtra has changed so much in the last few years that it has become difficult for the voter to ensure that the person they vote for does not change sides. This is going to be the first assembly election after the division of the parties elected for the last assembly. While on one hand the BJP-led Mahayuti is in the electoral fray, on the other hand the Congress-led Maha Vikas Aghadi is contesting the elections.

Amidst this web of Hindutva and secular politics, there are some other parties which are trying to establish their foothold in the politics of Maharashtra. In particular, the Dalit-Muslim or Bahujan vote bank is considered decisive in many constituencies. In such a situation, once again in Maharashtra, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) and Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), representing the Muslim and Dalit community, are trying their luck.

While the competition between the Mahayuti and Maha Vikas Aghadi is considered to be tough in the entire state, how are the Bahujan and Muslim candidates from these two parties campaigning and what challenges are they facing. AIMIM candidate Advocate Atiq Ahmed Khan told The Wire Hindi that this time the Majlis will get great success.

Atiq Ahmed is contesting from Maharashtra’s high profile seat Mankhurd-Shivajinagar, where he is pitted against Maharashtra’s strong leader Abu Asim Azmi and former minister Nawab Malik. There are a total of 5 Muslim candidates on this seat including Atiq. Atiq Ahmed further says that the education system and drug trade are in full swing in the area, which is his election issue. When asked about the division of Muslim vote bank, Atiq Ahmed replied that the people of the area are upset with the traditional leaders, due to which they are seeing him as an alternative by supporting him.

Atiq Ahmed also told that this is his first election, which is somewhat challenging but he is getting the support of the people, due to which his confidence in victory is getting stronger.

It is known that AIMIM is contesting on 16 seats, in which there are 12 Muslim candidates while on 4 seats tickets have been given to the Dalit community.

On the other hand, Prakash Ambedkar’s Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) is also in this election with 190 candidates. Anand Jadhav, a candidate of VBA, said that his party has fielded a total of 10 Muslim candidates. Anand Jadhav himself is contesting from Chembur assembly seat in Mumbai. Jadhav says that unlike other mainstream parties, he does not have wealth, property, or big cars, etc., but he has the love and support of the people. When asked why Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi does not join any mainstream alliance, he said, ‘In the politics of Maharashtra in the last few years, the public is fooled, leaders take votes and join some other party. VBA respects the vote of the public.’ Jadhav also said that the voter of Vanchit does not vote to see that Vanchit comes to power with his vote, rather it is the priority of our voter that the issues of people coming from Bahujan, Dalit, Muslim community and other backward classes of the society should be properly represented. Jadhav also added that even during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi had put a condition before the ‘India’ alliance that the alliance partners should give in writing that after winning the elections, they will not go with the BJP, which some of the alliance parties had refused. Due to this, the VBA had decided to contest the elections alone.

What do the voters think

Anil Baghat, a resident of Thane district, comes from the Buddhist community and is a staunch supporter of Bahujan politics.

He says that the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi does not back down from its ideology. The Vanchit voter always votes on the basis of morality. We have always opposed divisive politics.

When asked about Dalit-Muslim politics, he said that the Dalit, Bahujan and Muslim community should vote thoughtfully for those leaders who can become their voice in the House. But the Muslim and Dalit vote bank is divided to a great extent, due to which the right candidates who can represent them are not able to reach the Assembly. If the Dalit, Bahujan and Muslim communities vote together, the situation in the state will be different.

Courtesy: Hindi News