By Mohammed Shafeeq Hyderabad 11th September : It is the power of AIMIM in Hyderabad political affairs for more than four decades that its stronghold was largely indefensible to the political turbulences that swept the state.
Whatever the party in the powerhouse in the former unification of Andhra Pradesh, the support base of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) was not affected.
There was no change since Telangana was made an independent state in 2014.Despite the reservations that the Asaduddin Owaisi-led group had about the division of Andhra Pradesh, the party has adapted to the changing political environment which was dominated by Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS).
While maintaining its strong hold on the Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency and seven Muslim majority Assembly segments in the city, AIMIM backed TRS in the rest of the state in the 2014 and in the 2018 elections.
This alliance and the image of secularism of Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao helped TRS gain the trust of Muslim electors.
With a large number of Muslim electors in the capital city of the state Hyderabad and other districts They are in the position to shift the balance in almost 50% of the 119 constituencies in the Assembly.
Muslim voter turnout is believed to comprise between 35 and 60 % in the 10 constituencies in Hyderabad and between 10-40 percent in the other 50 constituencies that are spread in the rest of the state.
Apart from the eight Assembly constituencies in which AIMIM candidate were in the fight AIMIM supported TRS in all remaining constituencies.
The political opponents of AIMIM claim that the party of being a party of the politics of communalism, CM KCR on many occasions stood by his close friend and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi.He acknowledged Owaisi as the AIMIM leader for fighting for constitutional rights of Muslims in an democratic manner, and even spoke of employing the help of Owaisi to create an alternative national against both BJP and Congress.
BJP who are going aggressively to win power in Telangana and has been in the spotlight KCR for his relationship with Owaisi and accusing the TRS leader of engaging in politics of appeasement.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, and other top central officials of BJP have criticised KCR for its appeasement politics.
In a bid to relive the past state-level leadership of the saffron party have been launching bitter attacks against AIMIM and has called it as a party of “Razakars”.
“Razakars” were members or the supporters of Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) who supported the Nizam who wanted to ensure the independence of the state after India achieved Independence in 1947.
Thirteen months later, on August 15 in 1947, Hyderabad State acceded to the Indian Union following India’s military operation codenamed Operation Polo.
MIM was established in 1927 to support the socio-economic development and education of Muslims.
Following Operation Polo, which accelerated the entry of Hyderabad State into the Indian Union in 1948, MIM was banned.
But, in 1958 it was revived with an amendment to the constitution by Moulana Abdul Wahid Owaisi.great-grandfather of Asaduddin Owaisi.A famous lawyer in the time of the Constitution, Abdul Wahid Owaisi converted the party into a political one that fought for the rights of minorities, as stipulated in the Indian Constitution.
“Those who wanted to leave have left.People who love their country decide to stay in the country,” claims Asaduddin Owaisi in reaction to BJP’s insult of “Razakars”.
He denies allegations of engaging in communal politics and insists that AIMIM believes in Indian Constitution and has been fighting for Constitutional rights of Dalits, minorities and other minorities.
AIMIM made its first appearance in the electoral process in 1959, when it won two municipal by-elections in Hyderabad.
Then, in 1960, the party was recognized as the principal opposition party in Hyderabad.
Abdul Wahed Owaisi’s son Sultan Salahuddin Owaisi was among the leaders of the party elected to the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH).
The party was transformed in the 1980s, when Salahuddin Owaisi made three Hindu corporators of the party’s the mayors of Hyderabad.In the past, Hyderabad was a frequent site of tensions between the communities.
From municipal Wards in the city of old of Hyderabad and two Lok Sabha seats in 2019, AIMIM has come a far in its journey of six decades in Independent India.
Three decades after being elected to the Hyderabad seat the party grew in the true sense in 2019 when it took over the Aurangabad seat in Maharashtra from the Shiv Sena.
A party restricted to Hyderabad’s old city of Hyderabad until the last few years, AIMIM was a butt of ridicule from its competitors for claiming to be an all-India event.
The party has now 10 MLAs, seven in Telangana Two in Maharashtra and one in Bihar.
The number of MLAs was 14 until recently however, four MLAs in Bihar have switched towards the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD).
While continuing to work to expand into various states AIMIM is also expanding its reach to other states.
AIMIM is cautiously trying to stop the BJP’s growth in Telangana.
In a move that is designed to stop the BJP from using political pressure to exploit emotional issues like September 17 AIMIM for the first time in its history has decided to commemorate the day as a the national day of integration.
It was on the 17th of September 1948, that Hyderabad State was merged with the Indian Union.AIMIM was always against celebrating Independence Day due to the fact that there’s only one Independence Day for the entire nation.
The BJP has been focusing on TRS for not formally celebrating “Telangana Liberation day” because of the pressure exerted by Owaisi.
However, political analysts believe that KCR might be under greater criticism from BJP because of his relationship with AIMIM.
“KCR hopes to signal the advent of a secular state in India by the ‘BJP Mukt Bharat’.If BJP is a communal one but not secular, how do you make MIM be considered to be secular? Bonhomie with Owaisis brings up doubts about secular politics and ultimately helps BJP in the consolidation of its majoritarians,” says professor K.Nageshwar.
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