AIADMK trying to woo minorities back

CHENNAI: After ending its ties with the BJP and exiting the National Democratic Alliance, the AIADMK leadership is making calculative measures to win back the trust of minorities, who play a crucial role in the outcome of nearly several Lok Sabha constituencies in the State.

Party General Secretary and Leader of Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami, according to insiders, asked the party functionaries to reach out to the traditional vote bank of the party among the minorities and “win back the lost trust.”

Following this, a meeting was arranged between Manithaneya Jananayaga Katchi leader Thamimun Ansari, who in turn, thanked Palaniswami for snapping the ties with the BJP. It was followed by the special call attention motion moved by Palaniswami in the recently concluded Assembly session, regarding the premature release of 36 Muslim prisoners, who have been imprisoned for more than two decades in connection with the serial bomb blast in Coimbatore in 1998. Though it backfired as Chief Minister MK Stalin took a dig at Palaniswami for his “sudden concern” for Muslim convicts, it gave something for the AIADMK functionaries to approach the Muslim community who constitute nearly 15 per cent of the total voters of 6.20 crore voters in the State.

In some of the constituencies like Chennai Central, Vellore, and Ramanathapuram, the Muslim voters account for nearly 25 per cent. They are “committed voters” who speak in a single voice when it comes to voting patterns, which is a cause of concern for the AIADMK.

“Until we sever ties with the BJP, the (Muslim) community didn’t allow us to enter their area for campaign. Now, we can go to them and talk to them. The leaders of Muslim parties, who join us, will also bring minorities votes to our alliance,” said Organising Secretary A Anwhar Raajha, who exudes confidence of getting around 50 per cent of the minority votes in the Lok Sabha polls. Not only their alliance with the BJP, AIADMK’s support to the Citizen Amendment Bill in December 2019 angered the minorities even further.

It reflected in the state in the 2021 polls and the urban local bodies. “There is a trust issue with the AIADMK and its leadership among minorities, who strongly anguish over the BJP’s nine years of regime and its anti-minority policies. It cannot be ruled out that the break-up of the alliance between the AIADMK and BJP would be a strategy. Hence, the minorities are in no mood to believe the AIADMK,” said MH Jawahirullah, leader of Manithaneya Makkal Katchi, an ally of the DMK.

He added that the ‘INDIA’ bloc is clear in its agenda to unseat the BJP government at the Centre to protect the rights of the state, minorities and women. Hence, the minority would continue to back the DMK-led front.

Senior journalists and political critics Durai Karuna and Tharasu Shyam echoed that the AIADMK’s move to appease the minorities would not payback. “Minorities backed the AIADMK in 2014 polls when then AIADMK leader late Jayalalithaa took on the BJP. But, things have turned the opposite since 2019. Now, they are trying to correct their mistakes. The efforts from AIADMK in the last few weeks are to reinforce a point that they ended the alliance with the BJP and they will not revive it. These moves are aimed at the 2026 Assembly polls,” said Tharasu Shyam.