KOLKATA: Shahi Imam Seyed Bukari’s openly backing both the Congress and Trinamool Congress together as `secular’ and asking Muslims to vote for both of them, may have enthralled Congress but pushed TMC and its anti-Congress electoral strategy in a mess.
Speaking to this reporter, an angry senior TMC leader said on the condition anonymity: “We do not need any secular certificate from anyone, Congress may need it, but we do not.’’
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What seems to have upset TMC has been Bukhari’s late-realisation, which earlier kept both Anna Hazare (with a difference) and Bukhari off her Delhi rally which relegated Mamata backwards with her national ambition.Incidentally, Bukhari’s secular compliments also put Mamata Banerjee in a mess as it willy-nilly linked her with Congress, the party she has been condemning for “corruption and failed economic policies landing people into inflation trouble for shooting food and other essential commodity prices.’’
“We have no links with Congress whatsoever as we do not support its anti-people policies nor pro-corruption attitude,’’ another TMC leader said.Speaking to this reporter, a political commentator said: “Bukhari is more known to have always tagged himself with the political bread that’s buttered, but does he know that Sachar Committee suggested Congress-led UPA I, to follow a non-political socio-economic policy for religious minority.“I only hope Congress remembers those suggestions, before their leader go to Bukhari to seek religious backing.’’
While Bukhari’s secular compliments to both Congress and TMC pushed later to an uneasy situation, it has also opened Mamata Banerjee to attacks from state CPI(M) and BJP.“We told you and always that Mamata is more pro-Congress than we are, Bukhari only exposed it,’’ said a top CPI(M) leader, though it flattened up state Congress leaders a bit more for same reasons for allegation, “TMC having links with them.’’
“Bukhari does not know that poor and illiterate and socially deprived Muslims in remote villages even do not know him, let alone having time to listen to him,’’ said another political commentator.
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