ANALYSIS The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AMIM) has been emerged as a 'game changer' in coming elections 2014. This party revamped in administrative, political strategies, cadre, leadership and public relations. AMIM an ally of the Congress party from 2004 general elections. But with the dipping popularity of the Congress, consolidation of the TRS, rise of the YSR Congress and indications that the TDP has a strong chance of returning to power, the AMIM may have to make some difficult choices as the country moves towards 2014 elections.
The AMIM leadership, however, is keeping all cards close to its chest. It doesn't want to give any hint now whether the party would continue its association with the Congress, opt for the YSR Congress or plump for the TDP. The party leadership believes that it has the requisite bargaining skills to negotiate for the best possible deal when required. "Why give away our plans now. We will cross the bridge when we come to it," appears to be the MIM leadership's dictum.
The history of MIM demonstrates that it has been unusually bold in taking decisions and does not lose any opportunity that knocks on its door. Revival of the party with the same name that it had before the state of Hyderabad was merged into Indian Union in 1948 required courage.
Some old-timers who did not agree with the political philosophy of the party before or after 1948 say that it was crazy on the part of Qasim Razvi to come out of prison after serving for 9 years and think of reviving the party which carried the baggage of being militant and virulently communal. He was jeopardizing the lives of the Muslims once again, they believed.
But Razvi or his band of staunch followers would have nothing of it. In a meeting of the consultative council of the MIM which he called a week before leaving for Pakistan in 1958, Razvi nominated Abdul Wahid Owaisi, a lawyer and grandfather of Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, as his successor.
The reaction of the Hindus as well as a large section of the Muslims, many of whom belonged to either Congress or the communist party, was strong. Undeterred, Abdul Wahid Owaisi went about reviving the party which he said would abide by the Indian Constitution. But the ruling Congress said that the new party would try to fan communal passions again and arrested him and three of his colleagues under the Preventive Detention Act on March 14, 1958. He was released on January 26, 1959. The same year the MIM tested its strength in the byelections to the then Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad (MCH).
In the following years when elections were held for the MCH it fought 30 of the total 64 seats and won 19. One of its candidates was a dalit who too romped home. Abdul Wahid Owaisi's son Sultan Salahuddin won the election from Mallepally division. In 1962 elections to the Assembly, eight candidates, including Sultan Salahuddin Owaisi, were fielded while Abdul Wahid Owaisi contested the Hyderabad Parliamentary seat. While the father lost the election, the son won from Pathargatti segment. In 1967 the MIM tally in the House went up to three.
When Asaduddin Owaisi was asked after he took over as the party president following the death of his father in 2008, about future plans, he said, "The time is to consolidate what the party has inherited owing to the hard work of the predecessors. There cannot be any unconsidered experiments." The following year when the elections were held, the party improved its presence in the Assembly to seven from five in 2004.
Now he plans to broaden the party base by seeking support of the dalits and the backward classes. But the problem is that the dalits and BCs have numbers but no strong leadership. So what kind of relationship could there be between the MIM and the SCs and BCs? Could there be a platform where all the dalits and BCs sit together with the MIM? Or the MIM would try to field more SC and BC candidates? The picture is not clear as yet.
But there are reports that the party would be contesting the Jubilee Hills Assembly seat and go with full force for the Rajindranagar constituency which it lost in 2009. It is also planning to field candidates in other parts of Telangana as well as Rayalaseema.
All eyes would be on the MIM. Whatever moves it makes would have significant impact on the local politics. Who knows the MIM could emerge in 2014 as a more powerful king-maker than it is today.
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