From the Urdu Press: ‘Cong, SP, AAP tie-ups signal all is not lost in INDIA camp’, ‘In Ajit Pawar’s Muslim outreach, a message to BJP’

Referring to the seat-sharing breakthroughs made by the INDIA parties, the multi-edition Roznama Rashtriya Sahara, in its February 25 editorial, says that until recently it seemed that the alliance had unravelled. “But now, following the seat-sharing agreement reached between the SP and Congress, the AAP and Congress have also hammered out a deal,” it writes.

Under the SP-Congress pact, the SP has left 17 seats out of Uttar Pradesh’s 80 for the Congress, including key constituencies like Amethi, Raebareli and Varanasi, and would contest from the remaining 63 seats. “The SP’s decision not to part with Farrukhabad, Salman Khurshid’s home turf, may upset the Congress leader, even as the Congress has allotted Khajuraho to the former, deciding to fight from the remaining 28 seats in Madhya Pradesh.”

The Congress and the AAP have stitched up their alliance for the Union Territories of Delhi and Chandigarh, and the states of Haryana, Gujarat and Goa, the editorial notes, adding: “Late Ahmed Patel’s daughter Mumtaz Patel has expressed her disappointment over the party’s decision to part with Bharuch, given that the seat had once been the Congress stalwart’s bastion, from where he had won three consecutive times until 1984.”

The daily goes on to write about the INDIA alliance’s eventful journey so far — from the defection of its initial prinicipal architect Nitish Kumar, to the split in Sharad Pawar’s NCP, to the RLD leaving the INDIA, to the Trinamool Congress’s declaration of not doing any seat-sharing in West Bengal. “However, the tie-ups done by the SP-Congress and the AAP-Congress have signalled that all is not lost for the INDIA camp — that its existence still holds meaning. Only time will tell how much dividends its parties garner by having thrown in their lot with the grouping.”

SIASAT

Commenting on the Supreme Court’s verdict quashing the result of the January 30 Chandigarh Municipal Corporation mayoral election in which the BJP’s Manoj Sonkar was declared elected as the Mayor, the Hyderabad-based Siasat, in its editorial on February 21, says that it is “disgraceful” that the BJP appeared to have used the presiding officer to “illegally capture” the post, “brazenly flouting” electoral rules and democratic norms. While the victory of the AAP-Congress coalition’s joint candidate Kuldeep Kumar was considered a done deal, presiding officer Anil Masih had held eight votes cast for Kumar as invalid. The Court said Masih had deliberately put mark on these ballot papers, all of them AAP, to get the BJP’s nominee elected. “This reflects the high-handedness with which the BJP has been subverting due process and crushing its opponents across the country,” the daily says. “In this context, the apex court’s judgment assumes immense significance.”

Noting that it was perhaps the the first instance of a vote count being held in a court to determine the victor, the edit adds: “As the ruling party, it is the BJP’s principal duty to uphold the rule of law which it has been undermining.”

The daily states that the SC’s verdict has boosted the morale of those who believe in democratic principles and fair play. “There have been doubts in various quarters about the integrity of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) which are spiralling, while the Election Commission has not really taken concrete measures to address them. This matter could be pursued in the top court,” it writes. Whether it is the Opposition or the civil society, they need to draw up a comprehensive plan to seek legal remedies over their various grievances, the edit adds.

URDU TIMES

Highlighting the takeaways from a conference held by the minority wing of the NCP faction led by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar at Navi Mumbai, the Mumbai-based Urdu Times, in its leader on February 22, says that Ajit has assured the Muslim community of “security, rights and justice”. “Although the Ajit Pawar NCP has joined hands with the BJP in their coalition government, the party has not compromised with its secular values and principles, which is borne out by this conclave. It has perhaps happened for the first time that a major ally of the BJP holds a minority conference involving its top brass,” the daily says, pointing out that besides Ajit, the conference saw the participation of Praful Patel, Sunil Tatkare among other senior party leaders.

“In his address to the convention, Ajit flagged the communal incidents of Satara and Mira Road, saying how his government promptly controlled them. He asserted that as long as he would remain at the helm the minorities need not have apprehensions. This came as a much-needed healing touch to Muslims,” the editorial states. “Then going beyond such assurances, Ajit also supported the demand for reservation for the minorities in education and jobs. This is unprecedented that a BJP ally would make such an outreach to the minorities. This is significant amid the vitiated atmosphere prevailing today.”

The edit says Ajit has evidently struck a deal with the BJP on his terms. “The Ajit NCP has not given any signal that it has been influenced by the BJP’s Hindutva ideology. And it would be difficult for the BJP to co-opt the party, given that Ajit is not a pushover,” it adds.