Stories
UP Elections: How Powerful Are 'Bhaijaan' Backed by Muslim 'Messiahs'? Muslim Voter Dominance
- •Political parties are strategizing for the upcoming UP assembly elections, with a significant focus on wooing Muslim voters.
- •The Congress party has appointed a Muslim leader as state working president to attract 19-20% of Muslim voters.
- •AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi is actively advocating for Muslims, questioning why no Muslim Chief Minister has been appointed despite their support for various parties.
- •In the last three elections, Muslim-majority seats saw dominance shift from SP in 2012, to BJP in 2017, and then to the SP alliance in 2022.
- •Muslim voters are decisive in numerous UP assembly seats, including Kairana, Nagina, Rampur, Behat, Deoband, Sambhal, Kundarki, Moradabad Rural, Amroha, Dhaulana, and Saharanpur Rural.
Key Questions Answered
In the 2012 assembly elections, the Samajwadi Party dominated by winning nearly half of the 57 Muslim-majority seats. In 2017, the BJP pulled off a major upset by capturing 37 of those seats. By 2022, the SP alliance made a comeback with the SP winning 34 seats and the RLD securing 2, while the BJP dropped to 20.
Uttar Pradesh has exceptionally high Muslim influence and populations in divisions like Saharanpur, Moradabad, and Meerut-Hapur, as well as the Bijnor belt and Rampur. Furthermore, analysis of urban centers shows that 226 towns and cities have a Muslim population exceeding 50 percent.
According to surveys from the 2022 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, approximately 83 percent of Muslim votes were cast in favor of the Samajwadi Party, which helped increase the number of Muslim MLAs from 23 to 34.
