‘Allah se dariye, BJP se mat dariya’: Prashant Kishor's bold message to Seemanchal Muslims ahead of Bihar polls

Kishanganj: Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor has a piece of advice for Muslims of Seemanchal ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections – fear God, not the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The former election strategist, now a full-fledged politician, is travelling through Seemanchal ahead of the two-phase polling in November.

“Other parties (Congress, RJD and AIMIM) will scare you against the BJP and get your votes in turn. We are different. We want to tell you Allah se dariye, BJP se mat dariya aur haq ka saath dijiye (Be God fearing, don't be scared of the BJP and stand with the truth,” Kishor told a gathering in Kochadhaman during his road show.

“You have to decide my brothers, you have to decide,” he said.

Kishor, who is campaigning in Seemanchal. was accompanied by party candidate Abu Affan Farooque, atop an SUV as he addressed the gathering. Farooque is a professional advocate and was the former president of the AMU Students’ Union.

Seemanchal — comprising Kishanganj, Purnia, and Katihar districts -has a sizable Muslim population and votes in the second phase of polling on November 11. One-fourth of Bihar’s 2.31 crore Muslim population lives in the Seemanchal region. Kishanganj is a Muslim-majority district with a population of 65-70 per cent from the community.

Prashant was perhaps urging Muslims of Kishanganj in Seemanchal not to vote for MIM or RJD candidates, whom he believes win only by exploiting fear of the BJP. Kishor's party has fielded 34 Muslim candidates for the 243-member Bihar assembly.

Seemanchal has mostly elected Muslim candidates. As many as 11 of the 24 seats of Seemanchal elected a Muslim candidate in the 2020 Assembly Elections.

"This time, Muslims of Seemanchal will not make the mistake that was committed in 2020. Owaisi Sahab is well-respected and well-educated, but let him stay in Hyderabad. There is no need to install a leader from Hyderabad here," Kishor said, recalling the 2020 assembly polls when Asaduddin Owaisi's All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) won all its five seats from Seemanchal.

It's another matter that four of the five AIMIM Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) later shifted to the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). The AIMIM has released 25 candidates for the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections.

Bihar goes to the polls in two phases –6 and 11 November. Seemanchal votes in the second phase. The results will be announced on 14 November.