Mamata stand will cost her, says aide

Ahmed said members of the community who were politically aligned with the TMC were feeling ‘‘isolated’’. ‘‘Communal riots are nothing new in India. But Gujarat stands out because it was state-sponsored rioting and any party which calls itself secular has to take a firm stand against it’’, he said.

However, he said he appreciated the fact that Mamata had little choice. ‘‘Our leader came out of the NDA alliance when she should have been there (referring to Mamata quitting the railway ministry before the last Assembly polls in Bengal). And now she has to put her strength behind the NDA when there is nothing left of it except liabilities.’’

Other Muslim leaders within the party — speaking on condition of anonymity — also said the community was ‘‘hurt’’. Mamata, they pointed out, had fought against TADA and other issues, earning confidence of the community. But her vacililation over Gujarat has hardly been overlooked.

Even smaller parties like the Party for Democratic Socialism (PDS, floated by Saifuddin Chowdhury/Samir Pututunda) and Socialist Unity Centre of India have organized protest rallies in Kolkata over the carnage in Gujarat. But not the Trinamool.

‘‘It has been difficult for us to convince our community members about her silence. Many of our community members came and told us that they felt isolated and insecure. We are under pressure and feel like hiding our face. But what can she do? The situation is critically poised’’, said one leader.

The Shahi Imam of the city’s Tipu Sultan mosque, long a Mamata supporter, also sounded dejected. ‘‘One had hoped that the TMC would pursue the secular line but many of our community members are depressed by its stand.’’

He also came down hard on other ‘‘so-called secular parties’’. ‘‘Where is the Congress, where are Mulayam Singh, Laloo Prasad, Chandrababu Naidu? Couldn’t these parties take their supporters to Gujarat to stop the violence instead of issuing mere statements?’’