Left busy wooing Muslims in MIM fiefdom

Syed Akbar
Hyderabad, March 14: The Left is now busy consolidating its votebank
among Muslims, who form the large chunk of electorate in Hyderabad.

CPM MP P Madhu and CPI MP Mohammad Azeez Pasha have been
holding a series of meetings with local Muslim leaders right from the
municipal division level to wean away voters from the Majlis-e-
Ittehadul Muslimeen.

The Left leaders got a shot in the arm with the Telugu Desam too
extending political support to them against the MIM, which has been in
control of old city for almost five decades. The Left and Telugu Desam
leaders plan to win over the local voters by highlighting the "failures"
of the Majlis and the ruling Congress whom it backs.

On Saturday too the Left-TD leaders convened a meeting of senior
Muslim leaders including from some religious groups to chalk out a
political strategy to beat the MIM in its own game. Former MP and
senior Telugu Desam leader SM Laljan Basha, former Wakf Board
chairman Muhammad Saleem, besides Madhu and Pasha attended the
pre-election meeting.

"The Congress and the MIM failed in their task to develop old city
during the past five years. Time has now come for the voters to revolt
against them. The city will witness development only if the old players
are voted out," Madhu said.

The Communists want to checkmate the MIM as the latter is poised to
win as many as seven Assembly and one Lok Sabha constituencies
hands down, thanks to the recent delimitation exercise. "If we do not
check them now, people will be put to trouble further because there
will be no development in the old city," Saleem said.