Not a Muslim-only party but won't compromise on Ayodhya, says MIM's Owaisi

Seeking to establish itself as a secular party and not one catering only to the Muslim community, Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen leader Asaduddin Owaisi said their next step would now be to make inroads into the bastions of 'secular parties' to serve as a political  alternative.

Refusing to be categorised as a Muslim-only party, Owaisi, in an interview to theHindustan Times said his party would work to provide Muslims with political representation, adding the community had to be 'rescued' from being held hostage by political parties.

While it is hopeful of emerging as an alternative to the secular parties in the country, Owaisi made it clear that his party will not allow any out-of-court settlement on the Babri Masjid temple issue that is currently under judicial review.

When asked what his response was to reports of the BJP-government exploring ways to build a temple at Ayodhya, Owaisi said: "The Muslim personal law board has already committed itself to a judicial verdict. We won’t let any temple to be built and if brokers among Muslims are trying to explore ways to revive talks, they will not be tolerated."

Owaisi has reason to be optimistic about the growth of the party. In its Maharashtra Assembly debut, the party managed to win two seats, including one in Mumbai, and secured a vote percentage of 0.96 percent. It also finished second in three seats while coming third in another eight seats.

While the party has made it clear that they will contest the Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal Assembly polls, they are contemplating contesting the Delhi polls likely to be held early next year - where the Congress is currently in doldrums and the main fight will be between the BJP and the Aam Aadmi Party.

And as we had noted earlier, this has many Congress leaders worried about the fact that it could eat into their share of votes from the Muslim community.

“He (Owaisi) will give fiery speeches that will polarize voters. That helps BJP to consolidate the Hindu vote while the Muslim vote will split between Congress, AAP and MIM,” a Congress leader had told Firstpost on condition of anonymity.

However, the rise of the MIM has not gone down too well with the moderate Muslims. Afsar Usmani, from the Movement for Peace and Justice, accuses MIM of exploiting the sufferings of Muslims. Speaking to Firstpost, he said the party must come up with a development agenda for the community.

Ghulam Mohiyuddin of the Moderates Forum says forming Muslim political parties provides only stronger justification for the existence of Hindu political parties.

“We should work against the very concept of religion-based political parties. We can have Muslim associations or organizations which develop policies, educate the electorate and make representations to major political parties,” Mohiyuddin toldFirstpost.