Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): The Congress has not given a ticket to any Muslim candidate for the past 15 years in the Lok Sabha election, but the party always shows that it is a well-wisher of the minority community. The state has 6.57% of Muslim population, but none of its members has been sent to the Lok Sabha in the past 33 years. The tickets, given to the candidates for 29 seats by the BJP and the Congress this time, do not indicate that there will be any MP from the state to represent the minority community in the Lok Sabha.
After Aslam Sher Khan, who won the Lok Sabha election from Betul constituency in 1991, none of the Muslim candidate won a parliamentary seat from the state. In 2009, Congress gave a ticket to Khan from Sagar. After his defeat, the party has not fielded any Muslim candidate. In 1998, Arif Baig was given a ticket from Bhopal, and, in 2004, Sajid Ali contested from the state capital.
After the defeat of both the candidates, the Congress could not take the risk of fielding Muslim candidates from the state capital. Arif Baig became an MP from Betul constituency on the BJP ticket in 1989, after which the party did not give a ticket to any Muslim candidate. There was always a Muslim MP from the state before 1991. Candidates belonging to the minority community won LS election from Satna and Betul constituencies.
Gulsher Ahmad and Aziz Qureshi went to the Lok Sabha from Satna. From Betul, besides Khan and Baig, Gufran-a-Azam also won from this constituency on the Congress ticket in 1989. Former minister of the Union government Aslam Sher Khan said as long as Rajeev Gandhi was alive the Congress was a secular party.
Rajeev not only gave tickets to the Muslims but also ensured that they reached the Lok Sabha, Khan said. But now, the Congress is not worried about anything, he said, adding that there are a few people in the party who want Muslim votes, but they do precious little for the welfare of the minority community. Nor do they stand by the community in their hours of need, he said. It is worrisome for democracy that neither the BJP nor the Congress wants to give tickets to Muslims, he said.
