Demand for Muslim candidate in Bhatkal constituency gains pace on social media ahead of K'taka polls
Bhatkal: With over 55 thousand votes, the Muslims in the Bhatkal-Honnavar Constituency have lately been raising demands of fielding a Muslim candidate in the constituency. WhatsApp groups and Facebook pages have been created to garner support for demanding a Muslim candidate among the locals.
The general perception among the Muslim youngsters in Bhatkal is that the community has not been able to groom even a single Muslim political leader for over forty years now after the late Jukaku Shamsuddin and SM Yahya. The debates on social media have also revolved around how the secular parties have exploited the Muslim votes in the region but have never allowed a Muslim candidate to contest the assembly elections.
The majority of the members of the WhatsApp groups that have been created to discuss the issue ahead of the local socio-political organization Majlis-e-Islah wa Tanzeem extend support to any of the candidates in the fray, collectively opine that even if it means losing the election, the Tanzeem should support a Muslim candidate and put a show of the strength and significance of its votes.
The Muslim community in the constituency has 55,000 votes, second only to the Namdhari community which has over 65,000 voters. The majority of the political parties have traditionally preferred Namdhari candidates or other candidates over Muslims to contest on their tickets.
Majlis-e-Islah wa Tanzeem in 2013, supported JD(s) leader Inayathullah Shabandri in the 2013 assembly elections. Shabandri secured the second position in the elections and polled over 27 thousand votes against the 37,319 votes polled by independent candidate Mankal Vaidya who won the election that year.
In 2018, Mankal Vaidya contested the election on a Congress ticket backed by Tanzeem and lost the election to Sunil Naik of the BJP. Shabandri, who is now the president of Majlis-e-Islah wa Tanzeem, had to withdraw his candidature after failing to secure Tanzeem’s support for the election.
With the 2023 assembly polls in sight, the locals are upping their demands to support a Muslim candidate. While some are against these demands and believe fielding a Muslim candidate will ensure the victory of the BJP, the number of people bolding the gamble to field a Muslim candidate is higher.
With Election Commission expected to announce the dates of the election later this month, it will be interesting to see how these demands of locals influence political parties.
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2nd phase of Bengal poll: 39.97 per cent polling till 11 am amid sporadic violence
Kolkata (PTI): Nearly 40 per cent of the 3.21 crore electors voted till 11 am of the second phase of polling in West Bengal amid sporadic violence, while tension gripped the Bhabanipur seat briefly as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Suvendu Adhikari took swipes at one another in the same booth area.
Voters queued up from 7 am outside booths in Kolkata, Howrah, Hooghly, Nadia, North and South 24 Parganas and Purba Bardhaman districts, which form Bengal's electoral and political core.
Of the total electorate eligible to vote in this phase, 1.57 crore are women, and 792 are third-gender.
Till 11 am, West Bengal recorded 39.97 per cent polling with Purba Bardhaman registering the highest turnout at 44.50 per cent, followed by Hooghly at 43.12 per cent and Nadia at 40.34 per cent.
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Howrah recorded 39.45 per cent polling, while North 24 Parganas registered 38.43 per cent. Kolkata North and Kolkata South recorded 38.39 per cent and 36.78 per cent turnout, respectively.
South 24 Parganas, a politically crucial district witnessing several high-profile contests, recorded 37.9 per cent voting.
The first phase of polls in 152 Assembly seats of West Bengal on April 23 also recorded more than 41 per cent polling till 11 am.
"Polling is underway peacefully, barring some minor incidents in certain areas. We have sought reports from the officials concerned," a poll panel official said.
The early-morning convergence of Banerjee and Adhikari at the same booth area in Chakraberia turned Bhabanipur -- the chief minister's electoral bastion -- into the centrepiece of the day, reinforcing the symbolic weight of their prestige battle seen as a rematch of Nandigram, where the BJP leader had defeated her in 2021.
Banerjee was already seated outside the booth after receiving complaints of alleged intimidation of local TMC leaders when Adhikari arrived there amid heavy deployment of central forces.
Stepping out of his car, Adhikari declared, "I will not allow any hooliganism", while Banerjee accused the BJP of trying to "rig" the election using central forces, police observers and election officials.
"BJP wants to rig this election. Polls in Bengal are usually peaceful. Is there goonda raj here?" Banerjee told reporters, alleging CRPF personnel had visited the homes of TMC leaders late Tuesday night and unleashed terror in the area.
She alleged that election observers were acting at the BJP's behest and claimed TMC workers were being selectively targeted across districts.
Adhikari dismissed the charges as signs of "frustration", claiming Banerjee had realised that "not a single vote" was coming her way.
Banerjee, who usually steps out of her Kalighat residence late in the day to cast her vote at Mitra Institution School, broke convention and hit the ground before 8 am, moving through Chetla, Padmapukur and Chakraberia, underlining the stakes attached to Bhabanipur and the wider battle for south Bengal.
Reports of violence, vandalism and tension surfaced from several districts.
In Nadia district's Chapra, a BJP polling agent was allegedly assaulted inside a booth during a mock poll. The BJP accused TMC supporters of attacking its agent, while the ruling party denied the charge. In Shantipur, a BJP camp office was found vandalised.
In South 24 Pargana's Bhangar, the ISF alleged that its polling agents were prevented from entering booths.
Howrah's Bally constituency saw tension at a booth in Liluah after an EVM malfunction delayed voting, prompting central forces to lathi-charge agitated voters. Two people were arrested in the matter.
Police and RAF personnel were also seen chasing away crowds near a booth in Amdanga following complaints of unlawful gathering by bike-borne supporters.
In Panihati, BJP candidate Ratna Debnath, the mother of the RG Kar victim, faced protests and her car was allegedly stopped by TMC workers, while in Jagaddal, the recovery of a firearm near a polling booth triggered tension before police and central forces restored order.
BJP candidate from Basanti assembly constituency in South 24 Parganas, Bikash Sardar, on Wednesday, alleged that "200-250 TMC goons" attacked his car and assaulted his driver when he was visiting polling booths in the constituency.
The TMC did not immediately respond to the allegations.
Unlike the first phase, where the BJP sought to defend its north Bengal gains, the final round has shifted the battle squarely to the TMC's strongest belt.
In 2021, the ruling party had won 123 of these 142 seats, leaving just 18 for the BJP and one for the ISF. For the BJP, breaching this southern fortress remains critical if it hopes to mount a serious challenge for power in the state.
