MANGALURU: A curious battle is on between arch-rivals Congress and BJP in Pachanady (Ward 19) of the Mangaluru City Corporation. While the BJP fielded Sangeeta R Nayak, the Congress opted for Vishalakshmi, in a ward reserved for BC(A) (woman). Both candidates were picked because of their husbands’ loyalty to their respective parties.
Interestingly, though the BJP candidate here bears a Hindu name, with a popular surname of the region, her nomination papers reveal a surprise -- that her religion is Islam, and that she has also got a caste certificate from the tahsildar, stating that she is a Muslim BC(A).
The Congress sought to get her application rejected, stating that she had misguided the Election Commission by concealing the fact that she has converted to Hinduism from Islam, and raised objections to her caste certificate. But the Returning Officer, in his ruling, said that Sangeeta’s papers were in order, and he has no jurisdiction to decide on the caste certificate issued to her.
The BJP candidate seems to have managed the conumdrum to her an advantage. On the one hand, she has retained her former religion (Muslim) to claim reservation under BC (A), and on the other, she has projected herself as a Hindu by mentioning her Hindu name (Sangeeta R Nayak) in the nomination papers and not her original name, which is Ishrath Begum. Clearly, this was done with an eye on the Hindu votes.
But the Congress though is not ready to leave the issue at the RO’s office. KPCC spokesperson and MLC Ivan D’Souza declared that the party would approach the High Court for justice.
Former mayor Kavita Sanil, who ‘sacrificed’ her ticket to Vishalakshmi, and has shouldered the responsibility of winning the seat, is determined to tell the people the ‘truth’ — that the BJP candidate is a Muslim and also a Hindu.
Sources said that the Congress has found itself on the other side of the fence in Pachanady. The party is treading cautiously with regard to the BJP candidate, to ensure that it does not upset Muslims, which may hurt the party’s prospects in several other wards where Muslims are in a significant number.
The main reason why Congress wants Pachanady voters to know that Sangeeta is a Muslim, is that the ward is dominated by Hindus and Christians; Muslim voters here are very few in number.