Muslim outfits drift towards third front

Sending a clear message to the Congress at a time when elections are round the corner, a group of mainstream Islamic organisations on Monday...

Sending a clear message to the Congress at a time when elections are round the corner, a group of mainstream Islamic organisations on Monday shared a platform with leaders of a potential third front to condemn terrorism and oppose what they called “targeting” of “innocent” Muslim youth.

While these Muslim organisations openly expressed their anger at the Congress-led Government, leaders of the CPI(M), CPI, BSP and JD(S) happily utilised the opportunity to drive home the need for formation of a “political alternative” to the Congress and the BJP on a secular platform.

What could be worrying for the Congress is the fact that the Coordination Committee for Indian Muslims did not invite a single leader of the ruling party to the convention for “restoring the constitution and making a communalism and terror-free India”. Organisers claimed they had invited RJD’s Lalu Prasad Yadav and LJP’s Ram Vilas Paswan but had been unable to contact SP leader Mulayam Singh Yadav.

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While the RJD chief expressed his inability to attend due to Chhath Puja, Paswan excused himself in the last minute citing non-attendance of any Congress or ruling party leaders. Eventually, it was an all third front show with Left leaders Sitaram Yechury, A B Bardhan and D Raja, JD(S)’ H D Deve Gowda and BSP’s Shahid Siddiqui in attendance.

Utilising the occasion to the hilt, Yechury and Gowda said it was unfair to target a particular religion on the issue of terrorism and advocated the need for formation of a viable political alternative. Yechury even identified the main players of the alternative- the Left, the TDP, the BSP and the JD(S).

Almost all the leaders of the Muslim organisations- All India Muslim Majlis Mushawarat, Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Jamiat Ahle Hadees, Milli Council, Majlis Fikr o Amal, Majlis Ulema Hind and Muslim Political Council of India- were united in criticising the Congress-led Government.

“We are disappointed with the Government. A new realignment of forces has become inevitable now. All political parties, who stand for secularism and socialism, should think about this,” Taslim Rahmani, president of the Muslim Political Council, said.