Ahmedabad's Muslim ghetto voters 'denied' right to exercise franchise?

By Tanushree Gangopadhyay*
Sections of Gujarat Muslims, with a population of 10 per cent of the State, have been allegedly denied their rights to exercise their franchise in the Juhapura area of Ahmedabad.
Local residents claimed, goons said to be attached with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, heckled many of the around 1.35 lakh Muslim voters of Maktampura, Juhapura, and compelled them not to vote on Tuesday when the voters in the entire State exercised their franchise.

The residents said, Juhapura, an area in western Ahmedabad, also saw some members of the minority community being paid to not go out and vote.
The Juhapura area of Ahmedabad falls in the Gandhinagar constituency, from where Union Home Minister Amit Shah is fighting Lok Sabha polls.
Juhapura is a huge ghetto where an estimated five lakh Muslims live with a voter strength of 1.35 lakh voters.

"Vahape do deense bahut goondagardi ho raha haye. Congress agents ko heran kar rahe haye do din se. Election Commission kuch nahi kar rahi haye... There is a lot of hooliganism particularly in the slum area. Besides there are police installations every 500 metres. The people are terrified", said Kausherali Saiyed of the Hamari Awaz organisation. However, he added, he voted in MK School.

Noor Jehan Dewan, an activist, voted early in the morning. "We encouraged people to exercise their legitimate rights. However, people were terrified to do so", she alleged.

Mujahid Nafees of the Minority Coordination Committee (MCC), boiling with anger at the minorities being harassed and not allowed to vote, said, "What is happening is anti-democratic and against the Indian Constitution."
Congress candidate Sonal Patel, who moved around the area, admitted, she could not help the voters. "However, they started voting after 3 pm. They could manage 50 percent voting."
Muslim voters complained, local politicians and candidates, including Sonali Patel, did not complain to the Election Commission, else they would have never have had such a bad show.
---

*Veteran Ahmedabad-based journalist

Comments

When democracy becomes a performance: The Tibetan exile experience

By Tseten Lhundup* I was born in Bylakuppe, one of the largest Tibetan settlements in southern India. From childhood, I grew up in simple barracks, along muddy roads, and in fields with limited resources. Over the years, I have watched our democratic system slowly erode. Observing the recent budget session of the 17th Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile, these “democratic procedures” appear grand and orderly on the surface, yet in reality they amount to little more than empty formalities. The parliamentarians seem largely disconnected from the everyday struggles faced by ordinary exiled Tibetans like us.

Study links sanctions to 500,000 deaths annually leading to rise in global backlash

By Bharat Dogra International opinion is increasingly turning against the expanding burden of sanctions imposed on a growing number of countries. These measures are contributing to humanitarian crises, intensifying domestic discord, and heightening international tensions, thereby increasing the risks of conflicts and wars.

Dhurandhar: The Revenge — Blurring the line between fiction and political narrative

By Mohd. Ziyaullah Khan* "Dhurandhar: The Revenge" does not wait to be remembered; it arrives almost on the heels of its predecessor, released on March 19, 2026, just months after the first film’s December 2025 debut. The speed of its arrival feels less like creative urgency and more like calculated timing—cinema responding not to storytelling rhythm but to the emotional climate of its audience. Director Aditya Dhar, along with actor Yami Gautam, appears acutely aware of this moment and how to harness it.

BJP accounts for 99% of political donations in Gujarat: Corporate giants dominate

By Jag Jivan An analysis of the official data on donations received by national parties from Gujarat during the Financial Year 2024-25 reveals a staggering concentration of funding, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accounting for nearly the entirety of the contributions. The data, compiled in a document titled "National Parties donations received from Gujarat during FY-2024-25," lists thousands of transactions, painting a detailed picture of the financial backing for political parties from one of India’s most industrially significant states.

Beyond the island: Top mythologist reorients the geography of the Ramayana

By Jag Jivan In a compelling new analysis that challenges conventional geographical assumptions about the ancient epic, writer and mythologist Devdutt Pattanaik has traced the roots of the Ramayana to the forests and river systems of Central and Eastern India, rather than the peninsular south or the modern island nation of Sri Lanka.

Alarming decline in India's repair culture threatens circular economy goals: Study

By Jag Jivan A comprehensive new study by environmental research and advocacy organisation Toxics Link has painted a worrying picture of India's fading repair culture, warning that the trend towards replacement over repair is accelerating the country's already critical e-waste crisis.

Swami Vivekananda's views on caste and sexuality were 'painfully' regressive

By Bhaskar Sur* Swami Vivekananda now belongs more to the modern Hindu mythology than reality. It makes a daunting job to discover the real human being who knew unemployment, humiliation of losing a teaching job for 'incompetence', longed in vain for the bliss of a happy conjugal life only to suffer the consequent frustration.

Captains extraordinaire: Ranking cricket’s most influential skippers

By Harsh Thakor* Ranking the greatest cricket captains is a subjective exercise, often sparking passionate debate among fans. The following list is not merely a tally of wins and losses; it is an assessment of leadership’s deeper impact. My criteria fuse a captain’s playing record with their tactical skill, placing the highest consideration on their ability to reshape a team’s fortunes and inspire those around them. A captain who inherited a dominant empire is judged differently from one who resurrected a nation’s cricket from the doldrums. With that in mind, here is my perspective on the finest leaders the game has ever seen.

‘No merit’ in Chakraborty’s claims: Personal ethics talk sans details raises questions

By Jag Jivan A recent opinion piece published in The Quint by Subhash Chandra Garg has raised questions over the circumstances surrounding the resignation of Atanu Chakraborty from HDFC Bank , with Garg stating that the exit “raises doubts about his own ‘ethics’.” Garg, currently Chief Policy Advisor at Subhanjali and former Secretary of the Department of Economic Affairs, Government of India, writes that the Reserve Bank of India ( RBI ) appears to find no substance in Chakraborty’s claims, noting, “It is clear the RBI sees no merit in Atanu Chakraborty’s wild and vague assertions.”

Search This Blog