Mayawati uses N-deal to win over Muslim vote

In a bid to use the nuclear deal to turn Muslim mobilization into a polarization in its favour, the Bahujan Samaj Party is inserting the India-US pact into its grassroots campaign among the community.

The BSP is telling the community that Congress has compromised its interests by signing the nuclear pact. The raging issue would be part of the Dalit outfit's mobilization through 'Muslim bhaichara committees'.

The strident stand taken by CM Mayawati against the nuke deal and her drafting of Islamic scholars to back her stand goes far beyond posturing as partymen are now spreading it to basic organizational units. Bahujan strategists conceived the 'bhaichara' committees as part of their outreach to communities outside its core Dalit base to spread the party's wings.

Not merely Mayawati, the deal has triggered a major reaction among political outfits to use it to tap the Muslim sentiment for electoral gains. While it was first aired by CPM politburo member M K Pandhe to dissuade SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav from jumping on to the nuke deal bandwagon, the reaction across the political spectrum has been on the same lines.

Congressmen concede there are problems and their concern was evident in AICC showing alacrity in issuing a statement on Tuesday to warn US against any misadventure in Iran.

The scepticism about the deal showed as Congress had a tough time negotiating with allies like MIM and IUML whose support is located in the community. It touched an extreme in Kerala assembly last week when a CPM MLA pushed through a non-official resolution denouncing the nuke pact with "anti-Muslim" George Bush.

BSP also sees potential in it. The focus of bhaichara committees has suddenly turned on the nuke pact to wean away the community from the pro-deal front of Congress and SP. A key BSP functionary said, "No one understands the deal. But it has more to do with the US. It is what we hammer on."

A source felt the nuke deal campaign could pave the way for a big change in the community's political choice. "It is for the first time that elections would be fought on a foreign policy issue. While Left is opposed to the deal, our leader has linked it to the community. It would fetch big results," he said.

Seething with anger against the CBI urgency in her disproportionate assets case, Mayawati has seized upon the nuke deal to use it to her advantage in Lok Sabha polls which she thinks can catapult her into a key role at the Centre. Sources said 'bhaichara committees' are being reconstituted along Lok Sabha constituencies to make them more relevant from poll point of view.