Patna, Sept. 18: The RJD has reasons to be worried over Araria MP Mohammad Taslimuddin's demise. 'He has left behind a vacuum which I do not see being filled by any leader in Seemanchal,' RJD leader Abdul Bari Siddiqui said.
The 74-year-old seven-time MLA and five-time Lok Sabha MP died on Sunday at a Chennai hospital where he had been admitted with breathing problems. The Bihar government announced a state funeral. On Monday, deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi, who has had several verbal tiffs with Taslimuddin, acknowledged the departed leader's 'mass grip' on Seemachal.
Taslimuddin started his political career as a mukhiya. He remained controversial for his strong-arm tactics, criminal cases being filed against him. But he never lost touch with the masses or believed in doing his politics from AC rooms, thus cultivating a Robin Hood aura around him.
Political tags never mattered to him. At different times in his political career, he was with the Congress, SP, JDU and RJD. But whichever party he joined he managed to take his supporters along.
In 1995, at the height of Lalu Prasad's popularity, Taslimuddin fought on a SP ticket and not only won his own seat but also a few more for the party in the Seemanchal region, hurting the then Janata Dal. It made Lalu lure him back. Taslimuddin - popular as Taslim chacha - never shied from airing his views even if it meant antagonising Lalu or Nitish. Last year, when the Grand Alliance was ruling, he had praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and criticised Nitish. The RJD issued a showcause notice but he never bothered to answer it. Neither did the RJD pursue the matter.
Seemanchal has a sizeable Muslim population, around 73 per cent. The politics there is very different. Muslims there are sharply divided into various sects - Suryapuri, Kulhaiya, Shershawadi and Pachhia. Kishanganj MP Asrarul Haque is considered a leader of the Suryapuri Muslims. Taslimuddin was seen as an unchallenged leader of the Kulhaiya Muslims, who have a substantial population in Kishanganj, Araria and Purnea.
The fact that Taslimuddin was able to woo a section of Hindu votes through his 'man of the masses' image and close aides from among Hindus, made him practically invincible.
In the past, two politicians - Pappu Yadav and Shahnawaz Hussain (BJP) - tried to challenge Taslimuddin in his fiefdom and failed. In 2015, Asaduddin Owaisi's attempt to get a foothold in the Muslim-dominated Seemanchal area failed miserably, again because of Taslimuddin.
'With Taslim chacha gone, it is very difficult to predict which way politics in Seemanchal would move' said a senior JDU leader. 'His son, JDU MLA Sarfaraz Alam, does not wield his father's clout. We relied heavily on Taslim saheb to get us through. Even amid a strong Narendra Modi wave in 2014, the BJP drew a blank in Seemanchal. But now we do not know what will happen.'
