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I feel like crying, a friend’s father whom I met Saturday afternoon told me as votes were being cast in the Delhi election. “For the first time in 40 years, I have not voted for the Congress.” The gentleman is a Muslim and the reason he did not vote for the Congress was simple. “My vote would have been wasted. AAP still has a chance to win against BJP.”

According to the India Today-Axis My India exit poll, 69 per cent of Muslims have voted for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

The shifting of the Muslim vote from the Congress to the AAP has made many “almost Sanghi” folks in the Congress grumblingly suggest ditching the Muslim community and pursuing only the majority — Hindus — for electoral gains, much like the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Also read: Not Kunal Kamra, the real test for Indian liberals is Sharjeel Imam

Why the shift

But the logic behind the Muslim community’s shift is not only simple but practical. The Muslim voter remains vulnerable in times of the CAA-NRC-NPR, which drives her choice to elect a party that will give her anything but divisiveness.

AAP convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, in every speech and interview, has insisted that there was no need to amend the Citizenship Act. He has also continuously spoken of education, development and building infrastructure as part of his election promises.

On the other hand, the so-called alternative to the BJP — the Congress — has not only been passive in its support to Shaheen Bagh but maintained a safe distance from the protests while issuing the caveat that the movement shouldn’t be politicised.

But the truth remains — the protests are very much political. They are very clearly anti-BJP, but only because it’s a BJP project to identify certain Muslim citizens whom it can later call “illegal”.

While Congress leaders Shashi Tharoor and Digvijaya Singh have, the holy trinity of the party — Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi — have not quite bothered to extend direct support to Shaheen Bagh.

The same could be said about Arvind Kejriwal, whose Hanuman Chalisa recitation might have earned him brownie points among sensitive RSS-inclined Hindus who also care about development. But the leading Muslim face of the AAP, Amanatullah Khan, has been upfront in showing solidarity with the people of Shaheen Bagh and the anti-CAA protesters.

Also read: How to be BJP’s version of a ‘good Muslim’ – A guide by Arif Mohammad Khan

Congress vs AAP

Muslim leaders from the Congress have remained conspicuously absent from the scene. There is no Muslim leader in the Congress today who holds any sway over the community. Delhi similarly sees no representation whatsoever. There are some regional leaders in Uttar Pradesh — Salim Shervani or Naseeruddin Siddiqui, who fought from Badaun and Bijnor, respectively, in the 2019 Lok Sabha election — but they are as good as non-existent nationally. In that election, the Congress fielded six Muslim candidates in Uttar Pradesh, and all of them lost.

Compare this with the AAP’s outreach to the Muslim community. Last year, Arvind Kejriwal hiked the salaries of imams from Rs 10,000 to Rs 18,000 per month. The salaries of helpers in mosques was also increased from Rs 9,000 to Rs 16,000 a month. These will be paid by the Delhi Waqf Board in 185 mosques that come under it. In fact, Kejriwal went a step ahead and increased the salaries of imams and helpers of mosques that don’t come under the Delhi Waqf Board.

The Congress is slowly and steadily losing its clout over the Muslim community. The BJP’s constant propaganda of calling the opposition party the “Muslim League Congress” has seemingly worked and made the Congress passive when it comes to taking unapologetic stands on policies that are clearly anti-Muslim and communally divisive.

Although the Congress’ initial official stand on the scrapping of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status was to be against it, its prominent leaders like Jyotiraditya Scindia, Janardan Dwivedi, Deepender Singh Hooda and a few others were seen siding with the “nationalistic” view of this move.

Also read: Who represents India’s Muslims? Thanks to CAA protests, we now know the answer

Not just Muslims

The bad news for the Congress is that it no longer appears to be ruling the roost when it comes to minority votes. And the Delhi election is only going to add another chapter to it. According to India Today-Axis My India exit poll, along with Muslims, the Congress is set to score poorly even among the Other Backward Classes (OBC), the Scheduled Castes (SC) and the Balmikis.

What also hasn’t helped the Congress is that Hyderabad MP and AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has repeatedly called out the party as being the torch-bearer of draconian anti-Muslim laws — whether it’s the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act or the severely abused sedition law — that the BJP is now using against the community or anyone against its views.

After speaking to many Muslim citizens Saturday, my biggest takeaway was this: The overwhelming sentiment driving the voting pattern of the community was to choose someone who was most likely to defeat the BJP. It is desperate, survival time. And one look at the Congress and the AAP makes it clear which of the two can fulfil this basic requirement of the community.

The author is a political observer and writer. Views are personal.

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