In race to win 11 LS seats, Himanta changes tune on Muslim migrants

GUWAHATI: In a clear deviation from his oft-repeated anti-Muslim immigrant slogan, BJP's master poll strategist and state finance minister Himanta Biswa Sarma tried to woo Muslim voters at Bilasipara in minority-dominated Dhubri parliamentary constituency on Monday by saying that the saffron party is not against the minorities.

Launching the party's formal campaign a day after EC announced the election schedule, Himanta addressed two public meetings in two different demographic set ups - Karbi tribal-majority Diphu in Autonomous District Lok Sabha constituency and Bilasipara in Muslim-majority Dhubri parliamentary constituency represented by AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal. To realize BJP's target of winning 11 out of 14 Lok Sabha seats in Assam, the party strongman switched from promising to evict all 'Bangladeshi settlers' from the autonomous district constituency to being a friend of the minorities at Bilasipara.

"BJP is not against the minorities. It is the minority leaders who have been spreading a hate BJP campaign by saying that we are against the minorities. There is no clash with the minorities. We want everybody. My only appeal to the minority people is that please do not write Pakistan Zindabad if there is a war between India and Pakistan," said Himanta, while addressing a gathering at Bilasipara.

Talking about the welfare schemes rolled out by the BJP government at the Centre and state, he added, "More number of minority people have received Rs 2,000 in their accounts (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojna) and more number of children from the community have received free college admission than the others."

BJP, which is hopeful of winning 9 to 11 seats in the state, is aware of the stumbling blocks in the Muslim-majority constituencies. "This time, our results will be very good. My assessment is that we will win in nine to 11 seats...not below nine seats or not above 11 seats. We will not win in some of the seats because of the demographic pattern in those constituencies," he said.

A couple of months ago, soon after the Lok Sabha passed the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill by voice vote, Himanta had said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has ensured that 17 assembly seats stay in the hands of Assamese people and not Muslims with the legislation. Without this bill, he had stated, these seats would have gone to 'Badruddin Ajmal' and 'Jinnah."