‘60% voters in Nagaon are Muslims, yet no Muslim candidate from national parties’: Nagaon bypoll candidate

Independent candidate Yunus Tamuli has questioned the major political parties over the absence of a Muslim candidate in the Nagaon Lok Sabha bypoll, claiming that around 60 per cent of the constituency's voters belong to the Muslim community.

Addressing a press conference in Nagaon, Tamuli questioned why the national political parties had not fielded a Muslim candidate despite what he described as the sizeable Muslim electorate in the constituency.

“Sixty per cent of the voters in the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency are Muslims. Even then, there is no Muslim candidate. Why are the national parties silent on this?” Tamuli asked.

The Nagaon bypoll has candidates from the BJP, Congress and AIUDF among others. The Election Commission's final list has 15 candidates, including BJP's Devasish Sharma, Congress' Sibamoni Bora, AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal and nine independents, including Tamuli. Polling is scheduled for October 6.

Tamuli also launched a sharp attack on Congress leaders Gaurav Gogoi and Rakibul Hussain, accusing them of remaining silent during eviction drives.

He alleged that although the Congress seeks to project itself as sympathetic towards Muslims, the party cannot be considered a genuine representative of the community.

“Even if the Congress shows its love for the Miya community, they can never be the true friends of Muslims,” Tamuli said, according to his remarks at the press conference.

Tamuli also criticised the BJP, questioning its approach towards the Muslim community and the political use of terms such as “suspected” or “doubtful” in reference to Muslims.

He said Muslims should no longer be viewed merely as a minority community and argued that their electoral strength has reached a point where they can play a decisive role in government formation.

“Muslims are no longer a minority. Their strength has now reached a level where they can help form a government,” he said.

Tamuli also targeted AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal, accusing the regional party of failing to adequately address the issues concerning Muslims.

The independent candidate's remarks come amid an increasingly polarised campaign for the Nagaon bypoll, where minority representation, citizenship-related issues and the political significance of the Muslim electorate have emerged as major campaign themes. Recent campaigning has also seen Tamuli publicly criticise both Congress and AIUDF.

Tamuli had entered the electoral contest as an independent candidate, saying that established political parties had failed to address what he described as the genuine problems of ordinary people in Nagaon.