Asaduddin Owaisi and his party AIMIM opened their account in Bihar with the bypoll victory from Kishanganj. While campaigning, Owaisi’s campaign video in which he was seen peculiarly dancing went super viral on social media. The rise and spread of the AIMIM, particularly under the leadership of Asaduddin Owaisi is a worrying phenomenon.
The demography of Kishanganj had a direct implication for this victory of the radical party. Over 68% of the population of this constituency is Muslim. The party is slowly, and steadily, targeting Muslim dominated constituencies of the country. The AIMIM was always thought to be a party restricted to Hyderabad alone, however, over time, and over successive elections, the party is spreading its wings not only within Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, but also Maharashtra, and now Bihar. For the Lok Sabha polls this year, the AIMIM formed an alliance with Prakash Ambedkar’s VBA in Maharashtra. The victory from Kishanganj was very much expected after Owaisi decided to field a candidate from the constituency.
The spread of Owaisi and his brand of politics, any sane person would say, is a cause of worry. From going to jail, to carrying a gun in a political rally, to delivering hate speeches regularly, Owaisi has done it all. An even more radical element in the party is his brother Akbaruddin Owaisi, who is infamous for having said that a police withdrawal for fifteen minutes would be sufficient for Muslims to teach Hindus ‘a lesson’.
Owaisi is nothing but a radical Islamist, who sees all other people of varying religions and cultures as lesser mortals. Owaisi had once claimed that ‘every child is born as a Muslim’ and that the parents then superimpose other religions over the child. He further claimed that Islam is the sole origin of all cultures and religions of the world. Not only is Owaisi hateful towards Hindus, but also towards sections of Muslims. He had vociferously protested the inclusion and recognition of Ahmaddiyas as Muslims by the Central government. Such views make his ideology corroborate with Pakistan’s. He also claimed that ‘Hindu minds were rigged’ after the BJP’s landslide victory in May this year. He has also been in jail for allegedly leading violent mobs against the Congress workers in Telangana.
One can say that his views are finding recognition by a certain section of Indian voters, and this further proves that they are willingly obliging to such radical and extremist ideologies. The spread of Owaisi’s brand of politics is a wake-up call which should make Indian’s worry about further radicalization of Muslims due to the misguidance of an extremist political party. Owaisi’s strategy seems to be clear. He is specifically targeting Muslim dominated constituencies across the nation and trying to build a pan-India machinery. Owaisi, like Jinnah, claims to represent Muslims. Muslims must understand that an extremist of Owaisi’s kind is the last person who should be claiming to represent them.