Author: Shyam Khosla
Publication: sentinelassam.com
Date:
One of the most disturbing developments
in the just concluded parliamentary elections is major political parties'
flirtation with the outlawed Student Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) to
garner Muslim votes. This phenomenon was more prominent in West Bengal
where Muslims constitute around 25 per cent of the total electorate and
can tilt the balance in at least 10 of 42 parliamentary constituencies
and on about 70 Assembly seats. Traditionally, Muslims, including Bangladeshi
infiltrators who have managed to get ration cards and enrolled themselves
as voters with the help of obliging CPM cadres, support the Left parties
in the State. This time round there was some disenchantment among Muslims
with the Left Front Government because of the ban it imposed on SIMI in
2001 following its involvement in a series of attacks on churches in different
parts of the country. SIMI was outlawed under a directive from the Union
Government in the wake of intensive investigations carried out by!
the Congress Government in Karnataka that unearthed a deep-rooted conspiracy
hatched by SIMI at the instance of the Pakistani intelligence agency, ISI,
to trigger Hindu-Christian clashes and disturb social harmony.
Presumably to send a strong signal
to the Left Front, the underground SIMI put up six candidates in Muslim-dominated
constituencies in West Bengal under the banner of a little known politico-religious
outfit - Indian National League. In a bid to exploit the anti-Left Front
sentiment among the Muslims, the Congress leaders held secret conclaves
with leaders of the outlawed SIMI to broker a "deal." Unnerved by the prospects
of a division in its Muslim vote-bank, the CPM got in touch with the banned
SIMI to explain that its Government had no option but to ban the Muslim
outfit because of the Central directive. Whether these "deals" were struck
or not or to what extent "secular" parties were able to control the damage
is not the issue. The point I wish to make is that political parties that
claim to be the protector of secularism in this country have no hesitation
in hobnobbing with fundamentalist parties to garner votes. It is a sad
commentary on the commitment of political par! ties to the cause of secularism
and national security. No one can deny that SIMI that the "secular" parties
wooed poses a serious threat to communal harmony and internal security.
After all, SIMI was banned on the ground that it was party to a criminal
conspiracy to fan communal riots.
The Samajwadi Party (SP), the Bahujan
Samaj Party (BSP) and Laloo Yadav's RJD that compete with the Congress
for Muslim votes in UP, Bihar and other States are in the same boat.
