Imams' body to oppose AIMIM's entry into the West Bengal poll arena

KOLKATA: The West Bengal Imams' Association said on Wednesday that they will hit the streets and gather support against the AIMIM's decision to participate in the upcoming Assembly elections by fielding candidates in an alliance with influential Islamic cleric Abbas Siddiqui. 

The Imam's body alleged that the AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi's decision to venture into Bengal's electoral arena is with the goal of ensuring a division of votes in favour of the BJP in next year's elections.

 
The Imams' Association also said that, if necessary, they will form a new organisation and contest the upcoming elections to foil the plans of AIMIM and Abbas.
 
The ruling Trinamool Congress enjoys the support of the Muslims who form more than 30 per cent of the total electorate in Bengal. The community switched allegiance to the TMC's fold in the 2011 Assembly elections, a decision that played a major part in the Left Front's decimation.
 
On January 3, Owaisi had visited Furfura Sharif in Hooghly district and met Abbas signalling AIMIM's entry into the 2021 Assembly elections fray. 

The entry of AIMIM and its alliance with Abbas is said to be aimed at chipping away at the minority vote share of the TMC. Both the TMC and the CPI(M) have described Owaisi as BJP's proxy.

After putting up an impressive show in last year's Bihar Assembly elections by bagging five seats, the AIMIM is now eyeing the upcoming Bengal polls. The party is keen to leave its footprint on the politically volatile soil of Bengal, said the outfit's state secretary Jamirul Hassan.