‘They will do anything for votes’: BJP candidates print Urdu pamphlets for Maharashtra civic polls, face flak

As images of the pamphlet spread, leaders from the AIMIM, MNS, and the Congress accused the BJP of political opportunism and hypocrisy. “So this is the BJP’s so-called hardcore Hindutva. On one hand, they hurl abuses at Muslims as a whole, and try to provoke Hindus against Muslims. On the other hand, they print pamphlets in Urdu to chase Muslim votes and give funds to madrassas,” MNS spokesperson Yogesh Chile said.

The AIMIM’s Waris Pathan echoed this sentiment in a social media post. “Until yesterday, the BJP hated the Urdu language, linked it to an entire community, and used to spew all kinds of nonsense against those who spoke Urdu.Today, the same BJP is distributing pamphlets in Urdu for Muslim votes in the Uran Municipal Council elections in Maharashtra.They will do anything for votes,” he wrote.

MLA Rais Shaikh of the Samajwadi Party also taunted the BJP, demanding to know what its minister Nitesh Rane had to say about the pamphlet. Rane had called for Marathi to be used instead of Urdu in madrasas.

Uran has a significant Muslim population, with the community holding a decisive vote share in several pockets of the town. The Urdu pamphlet appears to be a calculated attempt to reach out to this electorate ahead of the civic polls.

The BJP has not reacted to the controversy over the pamphlet so far.

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