Lucknow: Fielding a Dalit candidate from the Muslim-dominated Bikapur constituency of Faizabad in assembly bypolls to experiment with ‘Dalit-Muslim unity’ plan ahead of the 2017 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections proved suicidal to AIMIM President and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi.
Owaisi’s fielded Dalit youth leader Pradeep Kori lost to Samajwadi Party candidate Anand Sen Yadav who won by-election in Bikapur constituency by more than 10,000 votes, according to the state election commission announcement made after counting of votes.
Owaisi fielded Kori by ignoring the Muslim who wanted to contest the bypolls on the MIM ticket a from the Bikapur constituency accused the AIMIM chief of playing communal card.
Local Muslims who were angry with Owaisi were of the view that, the AIMIM President in an attempt to expand its party base in other parts of the country and to fulfill political gains at the cost of community’s interest, fielded a non-Muslim candidate.
“His decision to field a Dalit candidate for Bikapur assembly seat has no other reason than his self-interest to project him the messiah of Dalits, which certainly he is not”, said Naushad Alam, a teacher to Ummid.com.
The AIMIM contested Maharashtra state elections and won two seats. Then the party tried luck in Bihar but faced humiliating defeat.
Meanwhile, it comes as a jolt as the BJP has defeated the ruling Samajwadi Party in Assembly bypoll in riot-hit Muzaffarnagar by 6000 votes.
“Congress has won Deoband (Saharanpur), while BJP has won Muzaffarnagar seat. SP has won in Bikapur (Faizabad),” said UP Chief Electoral Officer, Arun Singhal.