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Following the results of the West Bengal assembly elections, which denied over a decade-long Trinamool Congress' rule, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi on Tuesday claimed that TMC's "corruption, misgovernance" and betrayal of the Muslim community were among the reasons for their loss.
In an interview with ANI, Owaisi claimed that there were four main areas where he believes the state government failed the public, suggesting that the leadership had become disconnected from the needs of the people. "There are many reasons for TMC's defeat in the Bengal elections. Their corruption, their misgovernance, and betraying the large number of Muslims living there and not caring for them. The SIR was also an issue. These were broadly four issues. Mamata Banerjee had completely lost touch with the general public," he said. A major point of criticism raised by Owaisi concerned the legal status of OBC communities in the state. He cited an earlier Calcutta High Court decision, which, according to him, "cancelled 5 lakh OBC caste certificates", alleging that it disproportionately impacted the Muslim community. "The Calcutta High Court cancelled 5 lakh OBC caste certificates 1.5-2 years ago. You could have passed an act when you were in power...Out of those 5 lakh, caste certificates of 3 lakh Muslims were cancelled," Owaisi said. The Hyderabad MP urged political parties to move beyond using Muslims groups for electoral gain. "Don't just make Muslims a vote bank, make them citizens," he said. Asaduddin Owaisi was referring to the Calcutta High Court direction in May 2024, which cancelled all OBC certificates issued in West Bengal after 2010. The court has directed the West Bengal Backward Classes Commission to prepare a new list of OBCs in accordance with the 1993 Act. Those who were in the OBC list before 2010 will remain. However, after 2010, OBC nominations have been cancelled. In the 2026 West Bengal Assembly Elections, the BJP secured 206 seats out of 294 seats in West Bengal, outperforming its 77-seat tally in the 2021 Assembly elections. Trinamool Congress, which swept the last assembly poll by winning 212 seats, finished a distant second with 80 seats. (ANI)
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