No party can form govt in Assam without taking AIUDF into account: Badruddin Ajmal

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But you formed the party in the backdrop of the Supreme Court striking down the Illegal Migrants (Determination by Tribunals) Act in 2005, didn’t you?

Yes, that is true. But we had never indulged in politics over the IM(DT) Act. Instead, the AIUDF was born to consolidate all forces subscribing to the fundamental values of our Constitution. We are also committed to safeguarding the interests of the minorities, as also to stop harassment of certain communities in the name of detecting illegal immigrants. A large number of people, for instance, have been marked “D” and denied voting rights. If you see our manifestos, we have also stood for implementation of the Assam Accord. Anybody found to have entered Assam after 1971 should go.

The BJP and its allies have alleged that the AIUDF and the Congress have conspired to make Assam another Bangladesh. What is your take on that?

The BJP-AGP allegation is totally false… Why should we conspire with the Congress? It is the Congress that had kept the illegal infiltration issue alive. The reality is that both the Congress and the BJP today fear the AIUDF because our party is improving its position every passing day.

You have fielded candidates in many constituencies where there is no significant presence of Muslims. The Congress says you are doing this to split Congress votes to help the BJP.

There is no bar in contesting in any seat. We have the right to contest in all 126 seats. Why should we spend time and energy to help the BJP, or for that matter the Congress? Yes, we are contesting in more than 20 seats in upper Assam, where our candidates will be from the tea labour and other ethnic communities. We are in fact getting Babulal Marandi of the Jharkhand Vikas Morcha to campaign for our candidates in the tea garden areas of upper Assam.

That means you are expanding your base all over the state?

Yes. But if you look back, we had one tribal and one scheduled caste member, who had won as AIUDF MLA, in the first election that we fought in 2006. We are not restricted to the Barak Valley or lower Assam. We have a strong base in central Assam too. And this time, we will win a couple of seats in upper Assam too.

That means the AIUDF will be a deciding factor in government formation in the event of the BJP and the Congress not getting a clear mandate?

Yes, why not. Every party fights elections to be part of the government formation process. This time, no party will be able to form the government without taking the AIUDF into account.

Muslims are your most important vote-base. What is the status of Muslims in Assam?

Muslims in Assam are the poorest. Their development indicators are the lowest. They are the most exploited. Go and see their living conditions. Go and find out their education and nutrition status. It is most alarming. The Congress is solely responsible for this. Yet, there are people and parties which keep raising an alarm against Muslims, especially over the increase in their population. The Muslim population is on the rise across India. It is an all-India phenomenon and not specific to Assam.

What do you think of the BJP’s alliance with the AGP?

It is the Congress that will benefit the most from this alliance. Moreover, the AGP is a self-contradictory party. It fought for the detection and deportation of Bangladeshi infiltrators. But when it formed the government, it had several ministers who were illegal migrants.

Who were those ministers? Can you name them?

Why should I? The people know.

How do you assess the prospects of BJP chief ministerial candidate Sarbananda Sonowal?

Sarbananda Sonowal suffers from lack of self-confidence. His dream of becoming chief minister will remain a dream for ever. His situation has become more difficult after the BJP took in former Congress leader Himanta Biswa Sarma. Himanta will ruin Sonowal’s prospects and career. Sonowal is a good person caught in an impossible situation. I am afraid he will also lose his ministership at the Centre after the elections. I have sympathy for him.