Muslim not voting en-block in UP polls

Lucknow, Apr 20 (UNI) The Muslim community, which constitutes a substantial 17 per cent of the electorate in Uttar Pradesh, appears to be a confused lot this time around as the assembly election process gains momentum, unlike the previous polls when it was seen to be voting en bloc in favour of one particular party.

With three phases completed in the staggered seven phase voting, it is anybody's guess which way the Muslims have voted.

As the statistics suggest, the Muslims have influence on about 120 of the total of 403 assembly seats in the state. These include about sixty seats in the western parts of Uttar Pradesh.

Bahraich, Ghazipur, Varanasi, Bareilly, Rampur, Moradabad, Bijnore, Amroha, Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Baghpat, Saharanpur, Kanpur and Aligarh are the districts where Muslims constitute 30-50 per cent of the total population.

Wooing of Muslims by most political parties continued on a high pitch but 'pregnant silence' on their part has left all guessing, much to the discomfort of the ruling Samajwadi Party which has always enjoyed their support and the Congress, which attempting to win back the community's support after losing their loyality following the demolition of the Babri Masjid in December, 1992.

The All India Milli Council, the political arm of All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), has admitted that this time, the electoral situation is different. According to the Council's president Maulana Gulzar Qazmi, the organisation apprehends there might be a steep fall in the number of elected Muslim candidates in the ongoing assembly polls.

He said the council did not release the list of candidates for Muslims to vote for against the BJP candidates in order to avoid polarisation of Hindu votes, but it did issue an appeal to forge unity of secular parties against communal forces.

The Maulana concedes that the situation is complex in this election.

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