Owaisi Launches Four-Day Seemanchal Nyay Yatra, What Is It And Its Impact Ahead Bihar Elections

AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi started his poll campaign for the upcoming Bihar assembly elections with a four-day ‘Seemanchal Nyay Yatra’ in the state’s Seemanchal region. The yatra began on September 24 from Kishanganj and will conclude on September 27. Speaking to reporters in Siliguri, West Bengal, Owaisi said, “Election campaigning has already begun. Under the leadership of our Bihar president Akhtarul Iman, our party has been working actively. We will meet the public in various constituencies and hold public meetings throughout the four-day yatra.”

Seemanchal’s Significance in Bihar Politics

The Seemanchal region includes Kishanganj, Araria, Purnia, and Katihar, and it has a significant Muslim population. AIMIM won five assembly seats in this region in the 2020 Bihar polls, marking the party’s growing influence. Many local leaders have shown interest in joining AIMIM ahead of the elections. The region, once considered a stronghold of the RJD, has seen shifts in political dominance after the death of RJD leader Mohammed Taslimuddin in 2017, allowing AIMIM to strengthen its position.

Ahead of the elections, AIMIM offered to join the RJD-led Mahagathbandhan, requesting six seats in the alliance. Owaisi stated, “We only wanted to be treated as equals and not as slaves in the joint fight against BJP and RSS. So far, no response has come from them.” RJD’s vote base mainly consists of Yadavs and Muslims. Allowing AIMIM into the alliance could impact RJD’s voters and may also give BJP an opportunity to accuse the grand alliance of appeasement politics.

BJP Observes Owaisi’s Campaign

Although BJP dismissed the yatra, it continues to monitor it closely. In 2020, BJP had won eight seats in Seemanchal. BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “It is none of our concern with whom Mr Owaisi is trying to ally. The bottom line is to gather Muslim votes, pure vote bank politics.” AIMIM’s focused outreach in Seemanchal indicates a determined effort to expand its political footprint in Bihar ahead of the assembly elections.

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