Congress set to encroach on Mayawati’s territory

New Delhi: With BSP chief Mayawati playing hardball as far as a united Opposition platform against the BJP was concerned, the Congress seems to have begun manoeuvres to eat into her dalit vote bank in Uttar Pradesh as evident by the induction of expelled BSP leader Nasimuddin Siddiqui into the party fold on Thursday.

Mr Siddiqui joined the Congress along with his 100 odd supporters amidst much fanfare at the AICC headquarters. All of his supporters, who joined the Congress, were either expelled or had quit the BSP following the party’s rout in the 2017 Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls. Those who joined Congress included former MLAs O.P. Singh, Raghunath Prasad Shakwar, Vijendra Vyas, Haji Shaban and Arshad Khan.

The 57-year old Mr Siddiqui, who had been one of the closest confidantes of the BSP supremo, also merged his outfit Rashtriya Bahujan Manch with the Congress.

Though on the face of it, senior Congress leader and its General Secretary for Uttar Pradesh Ghulam Nabi Azad maintained that there was nothing for Ms Mayawati to worry as she had herself expelled Mr Siddiqui and his son following the rout in UP polls, the Congress has sent a clear signal to the Dalit Czarina that it was getting ready to encroach into her territory. Mr Siddiqui’s induction into the Congress comes days after Ms Mayawati announced joining hands with the H.D. Deve Gowda led Janata Dal (Secular) in Karnataka — an alliance which is expected to hurt the incumbent Congress in the state. She is also dallying with parties including Ajit Singh’s Rashtriya Lok Dal to pop up a third front in UP ahead of three crucial bypolls scheduled there. She has also stopped attending Opposition strategy meetings over the last couple of months.

Congress sources said that Mr Siddiqui had met Party president Rahul Gandhi at least thrice in the last one month.

Mr Azad said: “Mr Siddiqui’s joining the party indicates the changing political circumstances in the country. This number will not stop here”.

Questioned whether the Banda strongman’s joining would put a dampner on the issue of a larger Opposition alliance against the BJP, Mr Azad said that when the BSP chief had taken away sitting Congress MLAs on the eve of UP Assembly polls, his party had not complained and hence Ms Mayawati should also have no reason to be unhappy.

“A grand alliance is keeping in mind larger considerations. At one time, we cannot fight so many forces. Thus with mutual understanding we had forged an alliance with the Samajwadi Party before the UP Assembly polls and had also been open to allying with her. Greater alliances happen for bigger considerations,” Mr Azad said.

Mr Siddqui said: “We would abide by the decision of the Congress National leadership on the issue of alliances with BSP”.

The expelled leader besides being the Muslim face of the BSP had been one of the closest confidantes of Ms Mayawati for the three decades of his political career until the crushing defeat of the BSP in the 2017 polls.  He was also a co-accused with Mayawati in the Taj Corridor scandal.

During the 2007 poll campaign, when the BSP experimented with new social engineering, he was projected as the party’s Muslim face. When the BSP formed its first majority government, Siddiqui was among one of the most influential ministers. He had charge of about a dozen departments including PWD and excise. In 2010, his wife Husna became a party MLC, joining him in the Upper House. She also joined the Congress on Thursday.

Before expelling him post-polls, Mayawati had stripped Mr Siddiqui of all his responsibilities in the party organisation in UP and transferred him to Madhya Pradesh. Soon after his expulsion, Mr Siddiqui had hit back at the BSP chief.

Though not many consider him a popular leader, he is said to have a sizeable cadre base and his joining can benefit the Congress with Muslim votes from the BSP kitty.