(TwoCircle)
Varanasi: If Mukhtar Ansari’s official support to Ajay Rai was the only remaining ingredient to make the Varanasi triangular contest a fast-paced thriller, then the Qaumi Ekta Dal leader has fulfilled that criteria too. With the latest development, Mukhtar Ansari, who did not file nomination from the spiritual city with the intention to help other candidates defeat Modi, has made a stirring comeback into the game as the fourth man putting a lid on speculations on which party he would support.
His show of affection towards Ajay Rai, the Congress candidate who is contesting against BJP PM hopeful Narendra Modi from Varanasi and Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal did came as a surprise for political pundits as the former is accused of orchestrating the murder of the latter’s brother Awadesh Rai in 1991.
Ajay Rai has welcomed the support in a professional tone which, nevertheless, has left Kejriwal sulking but even Rai may not be able to reap the harvest of Ansari’s allied gesture as the 3,00,000 mighty Ansari votebank might go for a split between the two sinking both their ships. Hence the question: cui bono. Who gains?
After the declaration, social media was buzz by its own new set of speculations. A Facebook user commented, “Mukhtar Ansari might possibly have struck a secret deal with the BJP to divide Muslim votes in the polls in lieu of which BJP would work on his release from jail and better future after.”
On the voters end, the Ansaris seem to be more perplexed than ever before. “We had not seen it coming. When Mukhtar Ansari had bowed out of the race, we, as a community, had become hopeful of playing the wild card role but now we have received a blow to our confidence. His abandoning the candidature finally gave us nothing,” says Naseer Ansari who belongs from an influential bunker household.
What may spoil the broth is the fact that Mukhtar Ansari is not a backward Ansari and the 1,85,000 above votes he polled were mainly belonged to the Ansaris living in the Alaipur locality which is inhabited by backward Ansaris whose families descend from Mau district from where Ansari has been a five-time MLA. They more or less respond to the call of Mukhtar Ansari as they did in 2009 but the weaver who boasts of belonging to Varanasi since centuries are not known to be easily influenced by Mukhtar Ansari.
“We call them Mau-wale (hailing from Mau) as unlike us they originally belong to Mau and have greater affinity with Ansari but among the bunkars we think that the bet should be placed on Kejriwal,” said a local weaver.
For Kejriwal leaning Ansaris, Ajay Rai is believed to have luck on both the sides of the divide. “Right now he is just raising his stake the city by having Kejriwal amd Modi as his co-contestants. He was in BJP before and contested on SP ticket last time from here. If he will win he will stay in Congress but if he loses and Modi leaves Varanasi after his victory, he will join BJP as by that time he would be the only powerful and celebrated candidate in Varanasi,” says Naseer.
Meanwhile, the Ansaris of Alaipur look the development as a way forward. Abdullah, cloth merchant in Varanasi is upbeat about Ansari’s support to Rai. “We were already certain that Ajay Rai can prove to be a better candidate as he is going to pull Brahmin and some Vaish votes apart from his own Bhumihar.”
"Wait and watch, Muslims are going to make a mature decision in this election. For us it is also safe to support Rai because no party can do any mischief on the day of counting as happened last year. Nobody messes with Ajay Rai in Varanasi so he cannot be defeated by fraud," adds Abdullah.
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| Mukhtar Ansari |
His show of affection towards Ajay Rai, the Congress candidate who is contesting against BJP PM hopeful Narendra Modi from Varanasi and Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal did came as a surprise for political pundits as the former is accused of orchestrating the murder of the latter’s brother Awadesh Rai in 1991.
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| Ajay Rai |
Ajay Rai has welcomed the support in a professional tone which, nevertheless, has left Kejriwal sulking but even Rai may not be able to reap the harvest of Ansari’s allied gesture as the 3,00,000 mighty Ansari votebank might go for a split between the two sinking both their ships. Hence the question: cui bono. Who gains?
After the declaration, social media was buzz by its own new set of speculations. A Facebook user commented, “Mukhtar Ansari might possibly have struck a secret deal with the BJP to divide Muslim votes in the polls in lieu of which BJP would work on his release from jail and better future after.”
On the voters end, the Ansaris seem to be more perplexed than ever before. “We had not seen it coming. When Mukhtar Ansari had bowed out of the race, we, as a community, had become hopeful of playing the wild card role but now we have received a blow to our confidence. His abandoning the candidature finally gave us nothing,” says Naseer Ansari who belongs from an influential bunker household.
What may spoil the broth is the fact that Mukhtar Ansari is not a backward Ansari and the 1,85,000 above votes he polled were mainly belonged to the Ansaris living in the Alaipur locality which is inhabited by backward Ansaris whose families descend from Mau district from where Ansari has been a five-time MLA. They more or less respond to the call of Mukhtar Ansari as they did in 2009 but the weaver who boasts of belonging to Varanasi since centuries are not known to be easily influenced by Mukhtar Ansari.
“We call them Mau-wale (hailing from Mau) as unlike us they originally belong to Mau and have greater affinity with Ansari but among the bunkars we think that the bet should be placed on Kejriwal,” said a local weaver.
For Kejriwal leaning Ansaris, Ajay Rai is believed to have luck on both the sides of the divide. “Right now he is just raising his stake the city by having Kejriwal amd Modi as his co-contestants. He was in BJP before and contested on SP ticket last time from here. If he will win he will stay in Congress but if he loses and Modi leaves Varanasi after his victory, he will join BJP as by that time he would be the only powerful and celebrated candidate in Varanasi,” says Naseer.
Meanwhile, the Ansaris of Alaipur look the development as a way forward. Abdullah, cloth merchant in Varanasi is upbeat about Ansari’s support to Rai. “We were already certain that Ajay Rai can prove to be a better candidate as he is going to pull Brahmin and some Vaish votes apart from his own Bhumihar.”
"Wait and watch, Muslims are going to make a mature decision in this election. For us it is also safe to support Rai because no party can do any mischief on the day of counting as happened last year. Nobody messes with Ajay Rai in Varanasi so he cannot be defeated by fraud," adds Abdullah.
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