Candidates in prison for 2020 riots cases, their families enter Delhi election arena

The Indian Express hits the ground and speaks to their families as they begin campaigning.

In Okhla, a wife’s tearful plea

In the crowded Shaheen Bagh Market, once the epicentre of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protests, life continues as usual  — shopkeepers haggle over prices, visitors weave through narrow stalls, and the air buzzes with the aroma of street food.

Amid this familiar chaos steps forward Shifa’s wife Naureen. She moves from shop to shop, handing out pamphlets about her husband, while making a request: “Unke liye dua karna aur vote dena (Pray and vote for him).”

Rehman, the president of the Jamia Millia Islamia Alumni Association, has been in jail since April 2020. “I am doing this to keep him alive, to ensure people don’t forget him,” Naureen tells The Indian Express.

Standing by Naureen’s side are Rehman’s family, friends, and a group of supporters, including a few staff members from Jamia Millia Islamia. Together, they walk through the maze-like market, handing out flyers. Their inexperience shows, when they chant slogans in a voice tinged with self-consciousness: “Shifa tum sangharsh karo, hum tumhare saath hain” (Shifa, you fight on, we are with you).

Placing her hand on the head of Kazim, a 15-year-old boy helping his parents sell fabric, Naureen says, “Tum padhna, tum toh hamare padhe likhe ladke ho. Aur apne Amma-Abba ko padh ke sunana, unko bolna ki dua karein aur vote dein. (You are well-read, you read it out to your mother and father, tell them to pray and vote for Shifa.”)

After she moves on, Kazim begins reading the pamphlet aloud.

At Old Mustafabad’s SM Marriage Hall former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain son Shadab addresses a poll meeting. Hussain is contesting from Mustafabad. (Express Photo)

While Naureen’s campaign has resonated with some, skepticism persists. Shaukat Ali, a mattress shop owner in the market, says, “Most people here don’t understand democracy, and many are illiterate… I learned about him (Shifa) through friends who told me he was a helpful person, a Muslim intellectual. But people are still unsure about whom to vote for.”

Rehan, a Jamia student who runs a cigarette stall in Batla House, says, “Many consider Amanatullah bhai (the sitting AAP MLA) like a brother, but he hasn’t done much in the last five years… Ariba Khan (the Congress candidate) is also strong… Others sympathise with Shifa bhai, but fear that AIMIM’s presence will split votes and help BJP win.”

At a jalsa (public meeting) at Batla House later that evening, Naureen takes the stage. Behind her, posters of her husband read: “Qaid hoon magar toota nahi hoon (I am imprisoned, but I am not broken).”

She begins: “I am here today not as Naureen but as Shifa-ur-Rehman’s wife. Opposing candidates are weaving a narrative that we will lead to a divide in Okhla, which will make the BJP win. But if it’s such a concern then why don’t they step back, is it just Okhla and Mustafabad’s responsibility to keep the BJP out of power?”

Her voice trembles as she speaks of her husband’s plight: “During the lockdown, we all felt that the confinement of our homes was unbearable, we were all praying for it to end. Imagine what my husband and others are enduring…”

As she continues, her emotions overflow. “I don’t know how to speak like a politician, I am an ordinary woman, one of you… Don’t drag me into debates about political issues I don’t have answers to. For me, the biggest issue is my husband, who has been in jail for five years. Please, think with your hearts and vote for Shifa; once he is out, he will get all your issues resolved…”

While the AIMIM’s entry into the Delhi Assembly polls has led to accusations from major political figures of them leading to a Muslim vote divide, the party’s Delhi spokesperson, Shoaib Jamai, says, “We are fighting only two seats to give a strong political message to other parties and people who labelled us negatively. In both Okhla and Mustafabad, our organisation and candidates are strong enough to challenge the existing MLAs.”

“This is the evidence that our party is a responsible one; we did not come here to damage any secular government but to fight for ourselves and to make a strong voice for the Muslim community.”

In Mustafabad, poetry as campaign 

On Monday night, Old Mustafabad’s SM Marriage Hall plays host to a poll meeting — of former AAP councillor Tahir Hussain. His 20-year-old son Shadab takes the stage, delivering an address on behalf of his father in the form of poetry:

“Mere walid sahab ne aap sabke liye ek paigham bheja: 

Inn aasuon ki laaj zara tum bhi rakh lena,

Bhulakar har ghila shikwa mujhe apna bana lena,

Dekar vote mujhe apna, mujhe tum nayi zindagi dena.”

(“My father has sent you a message: Honour these tears, and make me yours by forgiving grievances. Give me a new life by casting your vote for me.”)

Shadab then highlights his father’s contributions to the AAP and alleges that the party abandoned him after his arrest in connection with the 2020 riots. Tahir is accused of the murder of Intelligence Bureau staffer Ankit Sharma during the protests and is currently in jail.

“When my father was with AAP, he contributed significantly to the party. But when it came to supporting him, they distanced themselves instantly…,” he says.

Tahir’s wife, Shama Anjum, has been leading a door-to-door campaign while his elder son, Sharikh Hussain, manages his legal matters. Posters displayed at the meeting featured Tahir’s image alongside AIMIM’s flag with the slogan, “Aapki duaon ka talib (The seeker of your prayers)”.

For Mustafabad’s residents, the riots have left an imprint. Around 100 supporters of Tahir, who gathered for the public meeting, criticised the AAP’s handling of the riots. “If AAP’s Hindu MLAs had worked to calm Hindu areas and Muslim MLAs had done the same in Muslim areas, much suffering could have been avoided,” says Muqarram, one of the supporters.
He also made repeated attempts to dismiss claims of the AIMIM diving the Muslim vote at the BJP’s behest. He asks, “Is it only Muslims’ responsibility to defeat the BJP? Is no one else accountable?”

He then recited a ghazal by Hastimal Hasti:

“Khud chirag ban ke chalo waqt ke andhere mein,

Maangi hui roshni se andhere nahi bujhte.”

(Be a lamp in the darkness of time; borrowed light cannot dispel darkness).

Dr Irshad Chauhan, AIMIM member from Mustafabad, took the stage next to emphasise political representation: “This is a fight for our rightful share. Growing up, we learned that all communities — Hindu, Muslim, Sikh, Christian — are brothers and sisters, but today the fight is for our share in political representation. Vote for Tahir bhai if you want your issues to reach the Delhi Assembly.”

He concluded with a shair (couplet) by Rana Sayeed Doshi:

“Kisi ka kal sawaara ja raha hai, humein kishton mein maara ja raha hai,

Kisi ki tajposhi ho rahi hai, kisi ka sar utaara ja raha hai.”

(“While someone’s future is being secured, we are being eliminated bit by bit; While one is crowned, another’s head is brought down”).