Karnataka elections: Minority candidates may get fewer Congress tickets
, ET Bureau|
Feb 23, 2018, 07.33 AM IST
BENGALURU: Congress may not give as many tickets to candidates from the minority communities in the upcoming assembly election as it did the last time, although it is confident that Muslims, Christians, Jains and others will consolidate in its favour as BJP is working hard to corner the majority Hindu voters.
In all, the party has 16 MLAs from the minority communities at present — 12 Muslims, including Iqbal Ansari and Zameer Ahmed Khan who quit JDS to join Congress, two Christians and two Jains.
“This is likely to come down when tickets are given this time, as the winnability factor is more important this time, given that BJP is trying so hard to win Karnataka,” a Muslim leader from Congress told ET.
A question mark already hangs over Congress MLA NA Harris, who represents Shantinagar in Bengaluru, as his son Mohammad Nalapad has been accused of and arrested for assault, which has caused much embarrassment to the party.
In other constituencies such as Hebbal, also in Bengaluru, where the minority population is quite substantial, BJP has won the last three elections because Congress has not been able to put up a candidate to the liking of the urban electorate, according to Congress members.
“This may result in Congress putting up a non-Muslim candidate here. It could also mean that the Muslims get one less ticket this time or maybe lose even two-three,” another Muslim leader in Congress rued.
The minority population in Karnataka is estimated at 16% of 6.5 crore total voters. “Many migrated from the villages in the 1990s (after the Babri Masjid demolition) to live together in the cities, so they hold sway over only those few seats,” said a cabinet minister.
“Surveys tell us Muslims are worried that they became irrelevant in UP due to BJP sweep. We think they will vote for us as they perceive that only we are in a position to defeat BJP,” he said.
The Christian community, which did support BJP in some parts of the coast in 2008, does not appear to have made up its mind yet.
The Congress is, however, confident of the support of the Jain community, a traditional BJP vote bank.
In all, the party has 16 MLAs from the minority communities at present — 12 Muslims, including Iqbal Ansari and Zameer Ahmed Khan who quit JDS to join Congress, two Christians and two Jains.
“This is likely to come down when tickets are given this time, as the winnability factor is more important this time, given that BJP is trying so hard to win Karnataka,” a Muslim leader from Congress told ET.
A question mark already hangs over Congress MLA NA Harris, who represents Shantinagar in Bengaluru, as his son Mohammad Nalapad has been accused of and arrested for assault, which has caused much embarrassment to the party.
In other constituencies such as Hebbal, also in Bengaluru, where the minority population is quite substantial, BJP has won the last three elections because Congress has not been able to put up a candidate to the liking of the urban electorate, according to Congress members.
“This may result in Congress putting up a non-Muslim candidate here. It could also mean that the Muslims get one less ticket this time or maybe lose even two-three,” another Muslim leader in Congress rued.
The minority population in Karnataka is estimated at 16% of 6.5 crore total voters. “Many migrated from the villages in the 1990s (after the Babri Masjid demolition) to live together in the cities, so they hold sway over only those few seats,” said a cabinet minister.
“Surveys tell us Muslims are worried that they became irrelevant in UP due to BJP sweep. We think they will vote for us as they perceive that only we are in a position to defeat BJP,” he said.
The Christian community, which did support BJP in some parts of the coast in 2008, does not appear to have made up its mind yet.
The Congress is, however, confident of the support of the Jain community, a traditional BJP vote bank.
