Past Attempts Towards A Muslim Political Alternative in Bengal
Despite Bengal having a Muslim population of over 25 percent, Muslim political outfits haven’t had much political success here.
The romanticised reason given is that ‘due to the trauma of the partition, Bengal kept a distance from both Hindu and Muslim communal politics’. This partition baggage can also be seen in Siddiqullah’s comparison of Owaisi and Siddiqui with the pre-1947 Muslim League, also reflecting his outfit’s historical rivalry with the League.
But the reason is not that simple.
The Muslim League had won three seats in the 1969 Assembly elections and one seat each in 1972 and 1977. But during the Left Front years, space for Muslim identity politics shrunk to some extent.
It is believed that the Left provided safety to Muslims and ensured communal peace but did little else for the community.
Muslims remained woefully underrepresented in government jobs and in educational institutions. Politically too,…
