Will Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi be BJP's V-P candidate? Strong buzz after his resignation as minorities minister

NEW DELHI: Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, a prominent Muslim face of the ruling Bharatiya Janta Party, resigned on Wednesday from the post of Union Minority Affairs Minister, triggering strong speculations that he may be fielded as the saffron party’s vice-presidential candidate soon. Naqvi resigned a day before his Rajya Sabha tenure expired. On the advice of the Prime Minister, President Ram Nath Kovind accepted his resignation with immediate effect and directed that Union Minister Smriti Irani be assigned the charge of the Ministry of Minority Affairs, in addition to her existing portfolio.

Later at a meeting, PM Narendra Modi hailed Naqvi for his contribution to the country and its people as a Union minister. Along with Naqvi, the PM also heaped praise on Naqvi's Rajya Sabha colleague, Ram Chandra Prasad Singh, who also quit a day before the completion of his Rajya Sabha term.

The speculations about Naqvi being possibly projected as the party’s V-P candidate started ever since he was denied the Rajya Sabha ticket. A section of media had then reported that he may soon be appointed as the new Lt Governor of Jammu and Kashmir, as part of BJP’s outreach to Muslims. 

Also, after his resignation, the ruling BJP has no major Muslim face in the Union Council of Ministers and among the party's 395 Members of Parliament. It is also a rare occasion for the ruling party that the Union Council of Ministers will not have any representation from the Muslim community.

The opposition has been accusing the BJP of not giving adequate representation to Muslims, but the saffron party has maintained that its MPs work for all communities and are not representatives of any religion.

Over the decades, Muslim BJP MPs have had a nominal presence in Parliament. Naqvi himself has been a Rajya Sabha member for three terms, Najma Heptulla for two terms and Shahnawaz Hussain, currently a minister in the Bihar government, was elected to Lok Sabha twice. Naqvi was a Lok Sabha member for one term as well. Sikander Bakht, a founder member of the party and one of its first three general secretaries, was a Rajya Sabha member twice.

In a bid to counter the opposition’s charge, BJP minority morcha chief Jamal Siddiqui has been maintaining that politics should not be attached to religion and that MPs are elected as representatives of the people and not of any religion.

"So even if someone from our religion or caste is not there, we should understand that our own countrymen are there. Responsibilities keep on changing in the BJP and I am confident that the party will ensure representation of all communities," he said. 

The party also has Muslim lawmakers in some states, including one each in Bihar and UP. 

However, in view of the Opposition's constant accusation of the BJP being an anti-Muslim party and attempting to polraise and divide the country into religious lines, Prime Minister Narendra recently asked BJP leaders at its recent national executive meeting in Hyderabad to cultivate deprived sections in communities other than Hindus as well. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma also highlighted the party's good performance in local polls in some regions with a sizeable Muslim population.   

In view of the current political scenario, according to the political pundits, BJP would not like to lose any opportunity to woo the Muslim community, the country’s largest minority community also, and projecting Naqvi as its vice-Presidential candidate will be a major step towards that.

The BJP recently played a masterstroke by nominating Draupadi Murmu, a tribal leader from Odisha, as its Presidential candidate, in a bid to woo the members of tribal communities in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and Rajasthan.

If the ruling BJP eventually nominates Naqvi as its V-P nominee, it will not only counter the allegations of being an anti-Muslim party but will also be able to convince the vast minority members that the saffron party cares about the Indian Muslims and they do have a representation in the party. Though no official confirmation has come from the party, there are names besides Naqvi that are in the fray for V-P's post - Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan, former Union Minister Najma Heptulla and former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh.

It may be noted that Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu’s term ends on August 10 and according to the Election Commission and the last date for nominations for Vice President is July 19. The scrutiny of nomination papers will take place on July 20, and the last date for withdrawal of candidature is July 22. The elections for the Vice President will be held on August 6 while the next Vice President will take oath on August 11.