Left used Congress, ISF to crown BJP in Bengal: Sabir Gaffar
text_fieldsKolkata: In Bengal, the left front plans to crown the BJP so that they could become the major opposition next time, says Youth League ex-national president Sabir Gaffar who was very active in organising Abbas Siddiqui's newly formed Indian Secular Front(ISF) . He added that the Left was using Congress, ISF and Muslim minorities to make a clear route for their intention.
Sabir Gaffar, who helped Abbas Siddiqui to form the Indian Secular Front to add Muslim League in it as an ally, has nothing to do in this election. He decided not to cooperate with Abbas Siddiqui, who allied with the Left during this election against his wishes.
Sabir Gaffar wished to make a Dalit-Muslim Bahujan alliance and merge the Muslim League into it. He started working for the formation of ISF when he realised that Bengal needs a political establishment that moves parallel to its Dalits, Muslims and tribal communities. For that, he brought Waman Meshram, an Ambedkarite and The All India Backward and Minority Communities Employees Federation (abbreviated as BAMCEF) national president, twice to Kolkata.
Later he took Asaduddin Owaisi, president of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM ), with Meshram to Abbas Siddiqui's village Furfura Sharif. Eighty-five per cent of Bengal's population is composed of side-lined communities, while the remaining 15 per cent high castes ruled the state for decades.
But, during this election, thoughts emerged within communities like Matua and Rajavamsi to start a front along similar lines. They decided to start working for five MLAs, each from Muslims and Dalits, to win and send them to Legislative Assembly.
Sabir Gaffar says that at that point, the Left misled Abbas Siddiqui by telling him that they will come to power through an alliance with Congress. They put forward the condition that to add ISF with the Third Front, it should keep Asaduddin Owaisi and other Dalit groups away. And thus the idea of a Dalit-Muslim front went awry.
Sabir Gaffar says that after election results are out on May 3, Abbas Siddiqui will be forced to move forward with the Dalit-Muslim front.