Eye on KMC poll, BJP starts Muslim outreach

Kolkata: With the KMC elections due in Dec, the BJP has stepped up efforts to engage Muslim voters, seeking to expand its support base in areas where the party has traditionally struggled to make electoral inroads.The push was evident at a programme near Zakaria Street, a predominantly Muslim neighbourhood in central Kolkata, where senior BJP leaders appealed to members of the minority community to consider backing the party in the upcoming civic polls.Among those present were BJP MLA and minister Tapas Roy, Jorasanko MLA Vijay Ojha, and party leader Santosh Pathak. The event, organised by CR Avenue Evergreen Sporting Club and Welfare Society to honour meritorious students, was held on Maulana Shaukat Ali Street, close to Zakaria Street.While the BJP has made significant gains in Bengal over the past decade and is currently in office, it has historically attracted limited support from Muslim voters, who constitute a sizeable section of the electorate in several parts of Kolkata and the state.Zakaria Street and surrounding neighbourhoods have long been viewed as areas where the BJP’s presence has been limited, and the participation of multiple senior leaders suggested a concerted effort to engage directly with Muslims ahead of the civic polls.

Pathak urged Muslims to shed what he described as long-held reservations about the BJP. He also referred to the party’s electoral calculations, claiming the BJP was already in a strong position in Kolkata, but added that minority voters would become “stakeholders in development” if they supported the party. “There is a perception that Muslims dislike the BJP. The KMC elections are only a few months away, and you people will have to make a choice,” said Pathak.

“We are already ahead in 102 wards out of 144 wards. So BJP will form the board in KMC even if you do not vote. But if you vote then you will be stakeholders in development. If BJP fields a Muslim candidate, vote for them. People you have voted till now are already trying to get close to BJP.”Ojha echoed the appeal, arguing that minorities had been unnecessarily alarmed about the BJP for years. “The minority community has been misled for a long time.

People were made to fear the BJP. First try us, then decide whether to trust us. There are 1,825 days in five years. In 2031, I will not come to ask for votes. Your trust in me and my work will ensure who you vote for,” said Ojha, adding that voters would ultimately judge the party on its performance in office.Roy, meanwhile, sought to draw a distinction between what he termed “nationalist Muslims” and illegal immigrants.

“You may choose not to vote for us, but do not vote for thieves,” said Roy. “We have no problem with nationalist Muslims, but we do have concerns about illegal immigrants.”According to analysis of assembly election results, the BJP led in 102 of Kolkata’s 144 municipal wards. However, around 40 wards, including areas such as Belgachia, Rajabazar, Narkeldanga, Ripon Street, Elliot Road, Beniapukur, Park Circus, Topsia, Tiljala, Garden Reach, and Metiabruz, have sizeable Muslim populations, making minority outreach an important component of the party’s electoral strategy.