ISF’s Abbas Siddiqui on Bengal Ally

Exposing cracks within the Samjukta Morcha of the Left, Congress and the Indian Secular Front (ISF) in West Bengal, ISF chief Abbas Siddiqui has told News18 that it is “sad and unfortunate” that the Congress has been missing in the election campaign so far.

In an exclusive interview to News18 in Hooghly district’s Furfura Sharif on Thursday, Siddiqui said he didn’t know why Congress leaders were not coming forward to back him. “It is sad and unfortunate that the Congress is missing (in the campaign of the alliance). I don’t know why they (Congress leaders) are not coming here to back us. Only they can tell why…But in South Bengal, I have expressed my support for many Congress candidates,” he said.

Siddiqui, a cleric and a head of the Furfura Sharif, also blamed the state’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) for the rise of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The alliance was formed with much fanfare to take on both the TMC and the BJP. Last month, it held a huge rally at the Brigade Ground in Kolkata, where differences appeared to have emerged on the stage between Siddiqui and the Congress’s state chief, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury. The top Congress leadership has not campaigned in Bengal so far. On the other hand, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah have targeted the Congress for tying up with Badruddin Ajmal in Assam and Abbas Siddiqui in Bengal.

“What is so wrong about parties tying up with Badrauddin Ajmal in Assam or the Indian Secular Front (ISF) in West Bengal? We are not the ones who have looted the country. What does the BJP want to say? Is the country their personal property and that whatever they say will happen? The BJP gives such inflammatory statements for elections, as they have no other issue,” Siddiqui told News18. “If someone asks them about 2 crore jobs, they say Pakistan will be formed here (a reference to the BJP’s criticism of a TMC leader’s purported remarks)…if someone asks them about fuel price, they divert to infiltration from Bangladesh,” he added.

‘TMC RESPONSIBLE FOR BJP RISE’

Siddiqui, whose fledgling ISF was formed on January 21, also accused the TMC’s policies of being conducive to the BJP gaining a foothold in Bengal. “The TMC is the one which is bringing the BJP into West Bengal by its actions, like trying to stop Durga Puja (immersion processions) for Muharram. Mamata joined hands with the BJP in 1998…then (she) said the BJP is her friend and not an untouchable,” he added.

Asked about local TMC leaders appealing to people not to vote for the ISF, and arguing that division of votes will pave the way for a BJP win and Muslims will be sent to Bangladesh, Siddiqui said: “The voice in support of NRC (National Register of Citizens) was first raised by Mamata in Parliament in 2005. People know the history and won’t be fooled by the TMC. Whoever has joined the BJP has gone from the TMC (a reference to turncoats)…if people vote for a TMC candidate and he or she wins the election, he or she will also ultimately go to the BJP,” he said.

Siddiqui also accused the TMC of fooling Muslims for the last 10 years (the TMC came to power in 2011). “Now, the TMC realises that it is being swept out (of power), and the Muslim voter is deserting it. So it is speaking ill about me to get back some Muslim support. But it will not work this time,” Siddiqui said.

He also said CM Banerjee was doing a “drama” by displaying the injury she suffered on her left foot during campaigning in Nandigram on March 10, an issue the BJP has also taken up. “Why is she doing this drama? The fact is Mamata Banerjee’s position has become very bad and no one supports her,” he said. He alleged that some TMC and BJP candidates had come together on the festival of Holi in Kolkata, questioning if this meant that both parties would join hands after May 2, the result day.

BACKING FOR MAMATA

While Siddiqui does command some support among young Muslim voters in Hooghly and areas where he is seen as a popular figure, other Muslim clerics in Furfura Sharif say he is only trying to divide Muslim votes, which will ultimately help the BJP.

“Mamata Banerjee has done a lot for Muslims and spent a lot of money for development works, but the lower-level cadre have played truant. However, this is not the election to punish her as the BJP will otherwise come to power.

“We want peace and harmony in the state, and cannot let West Bengal become another Uttar Pradesh for Muslims…,” Mohammad Sheikh, an elderly man at the Furfura Sharif shrine, told News18. This sentiment was reflected by many others, though they did express reservation over the relative lack of development in the area. A five-kilometre-long bumpy road takes one to Furfura Sharif village, highlighting that the area is crying for development.

Siddiqui is harping on the same points, saying people should not be fooled by Banerjee’s agenda. His uncle, Pirzada Toha Siddiqui of Furfura Sharif, has been backing the TMC, stressing that the CM did initiate development works. He maintains the Sanjukta Morcha will not find success in these elections because Muslims won’t ditch the TMC. Siddiqui, the nephew, retorted that it was possible that the TMC was buying support. “There was an effort to buy me too, but I am not for sale,” he told News18.