By Abdul Hameed, TwoCircles.net,
Mumbai: In line with recent voices about a Muslim political party, Maharasthtra Muslims today in a convention expressed their wish to form a Muslim-based political party which will include other backward and poor classes of the society irrespective of their religions.
The Maharashtra United Democratic Convention called today in Mumbai was meant for representatives of all Muslim organizations –social, political, and religious– to think about a new political alternative in Maharashtra as a solution to the injustice, exploitation and oppression meted out to the minority communities in India in the last sixty years.
Maulana Mahmood Daryabadi, the convener of the programme said, ‘The aim behind holding the convention is to think how to form the third political alternative and to get rid of the exploitation by the political parties.’
Hundreds of prominent personalities representing various socio-religious and educational organizations of almost all the Muslim denominations and many other religions from 36 districts of Maharashtra attended the meeting.
Speakers from various districts of Maharashtra including Nanded, Aurangabad, Akola, Beed, Latur and Mumbai while talking about the policy of the Congress of using Muslims as its vote-bank expressed their anxiety over the six-decade-long ‘slavery’ of the party and suggested for the formation of third political front to not only ‘snatch’ their denied rights but also to help the marginalized and dehumanized backward classes of the society get their due.
‘After Independence in 1947 from British imperialism Muslims were caught in the slavery of Congress. It exploited them in every sphere of life and their situation became worse than Dalits as per Sachar Committee report. Today is a historical day as so many Muslim leaders have gathered here to switching over from the 60-year Congress slavery to freedom,’ said Dr. Azeemuddin, one of the speakers.
Haroon Mozawala, another speaker, removed the misconceptions in the minds of some earlier speakers that the new party will comprise only Muslims. ‘The party will not be a Muslim league rather it will be a secular party with representation from all oppressed and marginalized communities.’
An Aurangabad Muslim Personal Law Board member Maulana Mahfoozur Rahman Farooqi urged Muslim leaders to serve the humanity through politics considering it ‘worship’. He quoted a Hadees that a Muslim who moves from one place to other for the cause of another Muslim is better than a Muslims who have spent ten years in Eitikaf.
Professor Anees Qamar from Nanded said, ‘We must take as many people as possible in confidence through the Imams of mosques and the teachers in the madrasas situated in all the 36 Maharashtra districts. The Muslim-Dalit coalition will be effective in this matter.’
‘Any third front will require ‘base vote’ of Muslims. In pre-1992 time Congress would contest with Muslim base vote and it ruled. In post-1992 time Muslims obliterated Congress from UP and Congress. There are the examples of third front coming in rule in past but none of them became successful as there was no vote base of Muslims,’ said Amresh Misra, a well known journalist and historian.
At the convention Maulana Badruddin Ajmal, leader of Assam United Democratic Front, was unanimously nominated as the leader of to-be-formed Maharashtra United Democratic Front.
Sensing the feeling of the audience Maulana Badruddin Ajmal said that he would work to make the third front a success in Maharashtra. Maulana said that politics was not a ‘play’ and that to step into this field is the beginning of unending series of sacrifices. He assured in his address to accede to the wishes of the people especially marginalized and subjugated ones.
He also said, ‘The party will be anti-Congress and anti-BJP and this model will be followed all over India. There will be a committee, representing all the denominations and religions backing it, to which the president of the party will be accountable. Since the party is of poor, you people will have to give ‘note’ along with ‘vote’.’
‘The launching of the party will be announced after 40 days. ‘During these forty days our representatives would visit every district and try meet as many people as possible individually. You will be the hosts and organizers of the programmes for familiarizing people with the party. After forty days we expect at least one lakh people to gather in any of the largest maidans (fields) of Mumbai. On the day the party will be launched,’ said Maulana Badruddin Ajmal, would be president of the party.
The convention was scheduled to be held on December 1 but it had to be postponed to 17th December due to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack. In an earlier meeting attended by at least 150 distinguished ulama and intellectuals from Mumbai including Maulana Khalid Ashraf, Maulana Mustaqeem Ahsan Azmi, Maulana Ejaz Ahmad Kashmiri, Maulana Zaheeruddeen, Maulana Ahmad Ali Abidi and Mufti Ismail, it was decided to call an all Maharashtra convention to think about the formation of a third political front which should include all marginalized, backward and dalit communities from all religions and diverse cultures.