Jitan Ram Manjhi , Asaduddin Owaisi to hold joint rally in Bihar's Kishanganj

PATNA: Former CM and Hindustani Awam Morcha (Secular) chief Jitan Ram Manjhi will hold a joint rally with All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi at Kishanganj on December 29 against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), National Register of Citizens (NRC) and National Population Register (NPR).
With Manjhi deciding to share dais with Owaisi, political pundits have not ruled out the possibility of creation of a new combination of Muslims and Dalits ahead of assembly polls in the state.Muslims constitute 17% of Bihar’s population and scheduled caste 16%. If the two groups join hands, they might make a dent in vote bank of secular parties.
Currently, the HAM(S) and the AIMIM each have one MLA each in 243-member Bihar assembly and the two parties are hopeful of expanding their base if they come together under a larger umbrella.
Confirming the proposed rally, AIMIM’s Bihar unit chief and former MLA Akhtarul Iman told TOI on Wednesday that the first-ever joint rally of HAM(S) and AIMIM will be held at Ruidhasa Maidan in Kishanganj.
“Owaisi and Manjhi have confirmed their presence at the joint rally. Maharashtra cadre IPS officer Abdur Rahman, who recently resigned from the service in protest against the CAA, is also arriving to address the rally,” Iman told TOI over the phone.
Asked whether Manjhi was in the process of forming a new front of Muslim-Dalits by joining hands with Owaisi, HAM(S) spokesperson Danish Rizwan said, “Right now, we are coming together with single aim to register our protest against CAA and NRC. Currently, we have no plan to form a front. But in politics, possibilities are always there.”
To a question, Iman said, “What is wrong if HAM (S) and other like-minded parties support AIMIM in its fight against the CAA, NRC and NPR? We will try our best to unite all like-minded and secular parties to give an alternative against the NDA in the next assembly election in Bihar.”
The AIMIM had made its maiden entry in Bihar assembly in October this year after its candidate, Qamrul Hoda, won byelection from Kishanganj seat defeating BJP candidate Sweety Singh by a margin of over 19,000 votes and relegating the Congress candidate to the third position.
Manjhi had then announced to develop a political friendship with Owaisi’s party. Manjhi’s disenchantment with the RJD, the main constituent of five-party opposition’s grand alliance, was seen on November 21 when other GA allies openly took part in the RJD-sponsored Bihar bandh, but the former CM’s party stayed away from it.