MF is here to stay, says leader
Party will remain ‘the voice of Indian people’
SOME have already written the Minority Front’s obituary, predicting the death of the party after this year’s local government elections.
However, in an interview this week, MF leader Shameen Thakur-Rajbansi rejected these views, vowing her party would never die.
She said it would remain the “voice of Indian people”, in spite of its present woes.
“Even if I’m the only leader left, I will go and work with people who will learn and work with me,” she said.
Thakur-Rajbansi is a sworn disciple of her husband, Amichand Rajbansi, who founded the MF and led the party until he died in 2011.
The daily traction the party gains from various social media platforms gives Thakur-Rajbansi reason to believe the MF will survive, in spite of the loss of her husband and regardless of what the critics say.
Her husband was known to have been an eternal optimist, with his political savvy, tenacity and staying power giving shape to his convictions.
However, some believe the MF has no political relevance or substance without him.
Since his death, the party has been polarised between two factions, one of which is aligned to Thakur-Rajbansi.
The MF has also been financially challenged – which had a substantial impact on the party’s performance at the last elections in 2014.
At the party’s peak in 2004, it held two seats each in the provincial and national legislatures.
In the last round of voting, it could muster only 22 589 votes and, as a result, claimed just the solitary provincial seat ThakurRajbansi holds.
After Rajbansi’s death, Roy Bhoola, a former MF national government MP, left the party and three elected councillors moved to the DA.
Losing control of Ward 73 in Chatsworth in a byelection, which had been Rajbansi’s turf since 1994, was “heart-wrenching” for the MF leadership.
Also, in contesting five ward by-elections – three of which had belonged to the party – the MF was beaten each time.
The party’s Achilles heel now must be its divided leadership.
A group of councillors opposed to Thakur-Rajbansi have been at loggerheads with their leader.
Two councillors went to the high court in December 2013 to challenge her right to lead the party.
The court ruled that Thakur-Rajbansi should remain at the helm and prescribed the party hold a national conference within two years.
The disgruntled group also alleged she had not met the party’s national executive and, before that, raised questions about how ThakurRajbansi controlled the MF’s purse strings.
Thakur-Rajbansi said some members were “dreaming up” allegations about financial irregularities.
“When financial allegations were raised, my attorney wrote in response to those members and we have not heard about those claims since.
“They must not talk about money. It has been reported that we are the best performing party financially because we don’t owe the government any money.
“People have asked me about how I manage my books so well. And we’ve always had unqualified audit reports from the auditorgeneral and external auditors,” she said.
She said some councillors had not produced financial statements since her husband’s death.
She said the losses in by-elections resulted from some of her party members colluding with the MF’s opposition.
“Losing Ward 73 was heart-wrenching, but it showed us who was collaborating with outsiders and causing us to lose byelections.”
Thakur-Rajbansi says her relationship with the party’s national executive, especially the “disgruntled members”, has not changed.
“We schedule meetings – whether they attend or not is their choice. But some are strategic in their defiance because they want to make their bed with other parties,” she said.
On not holding a national conference within two years, as prescribed by the high court in 2013, Thakur-Rajbansi said it was not an indictment of her leadership.
“Instead of staying focused and building the party structure and forming branches so that a national conference could be held, some councillors got distracted,” she said.
The MF leader is adamant she has been working consistently at provincial level and that her retaining her seat after the 2014 elections bears testimony to her work.
Wiped out
“I don’t have to prove my credibility. It’s the disgruntled people who have to work hard and restore their image.”
Thakur-Rajbansi said although she had endured some tough times and a challenge to her leadership, she was at peace with all that had transpired.
“If I wasn’t strong when these problems arose, I would have been wiped out in the first round.
“I easily could have quit, but I am not a quitter.”
She said her party had already started preparing for the local government elections and was awaiting a confirmation of the date to take plans further.
Thakur-Rajbansi said councillors contesting the forthcoming elections would benefit from the work she had done on social media platforms.
“Young people have certainly embraced our party. My good work at provincial level will cascade down to the wards.”