Muslim candidates continue to be underrepresented in Karnataka elections

The Muslim community in Karnataka constitutes 13 per cent vote share but continues to be poorly represented in the political fray. In the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections, of the 58 candidates announced by three major parties, only one Muslim candidate is in the running.

The only Muslim candidate this season is Congress’ Mansoor Ali Khan, son of veteran Congress leader Rehman Khan. He will be contesting from the Bengaluru Central — a largely minority-populated constituency — against BJP’s three-time winner PC Mohan.

Even as Congress has fielded one Muslim candidate this time, internally, the party has seen friction for not guaranteeing enough tickets to Muslim candidates. Before Congress leaders announced the list, Muslim leaders in the party had demanded at least three seats for their community.

The Congress, BJP and JD(S) together have allotted seats to only 11 muslim candidates in the past four elections, according to reports

MUSLIM REPRESENTATION

Historically, Muslim representation in the polls has been weak in the State. Even in the last (2019) Lok Sabha polls, Congress’ Rizwan Ahmed for the Bengaluru Central constituency was the only Muslim candidate. Tracking back, 2014 and 2009 saw three Muslim candidates and 2004 saw four Muslim candidates.

The Congress, BJP and JD (S) together have allotted seats to only 11 muslim candidates in the past four elections, according to reports. The only Muslim MP who made it to Lok Sabha was Iqbal Ahmed Saradgi from Gulbarga, way back in 2004.

Growing majoritarianism and polarisation in the country are counted as reasons for the persistent decline in Muslim leaders coming to the forefront. Political analyst Rajendra Chenni notes that the rightwing parties have openly said they do not need the

Muslim vote bank to win the elections, which is quite different from the earlier rhetoric that there was a need to at least cater to the Muslim voter bank.

Even in the left wing parties, the number of Muslim candidates has been falling over the years because there is not much focus on grooming such candidates and bringing them to the forefront. “It’s challenging to see improvement on the horizon because the prevailing political strategy relies heavily on polarisation, which appears to be effective. This mindset is increasingly permeating the entire political landscape, where even parties that champion secularism find themselves embracing polarisation tactics during elections,” he said.