New Muslim party plans to ride Modi wave in Tamil Nadu

CHENNAI: Going against conventional political wisdom, the newest Muslim party in Tamil Nadu, the All India Muslim Munnetra Kazhagam (AIMMK), has joined the BJP bandwagon. Celebrating its first anniversary year, the party plans to organize a 'national development conference' in January to gain some traction in the state. AIMMK founder president N K N Shathakkathullah told TOI that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited to inaugurate the conference.

A little-known garments trader, N K N Shathakkathullah reckons that at a time when Modi has grabbed world attention with his development agenda, Muslims in India should be part of this movement forward. He floated AIMMK in Chennai on August 17, 2013, hoping to position it as the only Muslim party to support the BJP-led NDA alliance prior to the Lok Sabha polls. "I led a five-member team to campaign for Modi in Varanasi," said Shathakkathullah, who first broke bread with Modi at an election rally in Chennai on February 8 where he was introduced by the then state BJP chief Pon Radhakrishnan.

AIMMK wants to be seen as a progressive party that steers clear of traditional Muslim identity politics. Shathakkathullah says when he met Modi in February he asked that the BJP should not treat Muslims as a votebank.

Observers say there may be space for a new political message in the Muslim community focusing on jobs, education and economic progress, but that may not translate into electoral dividends since Muslims account for only 6% of the state's population. Muslim parties often rely on the support of Dravidian parties to get their candidates elected.

Asked about a new party like AIMMK, IUML leader and former Vellore MP Abdul Rahman was dismissive. "The BJP may like to have some Muslim organization on board to show it has the support of the minority community and may have induced some people to start a party with the word 'Muslim'," he said.

Nevertheless, AIMMK aspires to field candidates in the 2016 assembly polls as part of the NDA alliance in the state. "We have asked for 25 MLA seats based on our assessment of our strength," Shathakkathullah told TOI. "We have a good presence in Erode, Trichy, Karur and Namakkal at present and are assessing our scope for growth in other places in the state," he said.

According to political commentator G Satyamurthy, a new party like AIMMK will take five to 10 years to develop and must win one or two seats in the 2016 assembly polls to prove its strength. In the broad gameplan of the BJP to make inroads in TN, however, Muslim parties may at best have only a token presence, he said.

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