MUSLIM SUPPORT FOR WEST BENGAL'S COMMUNISTS ERODING

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KOLKATA 000180

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PTER PHUM SOCI ECON IN
SUBJECT: MUSLIM SUPPORT FOR WEST BENGAL'S COMMUNISTS ERODING

REF: A) STATE 58985 B) KOLKATA 00160

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1. (SBU) Summary: One of the factors which contributed to the
Communist Party of India - Marxist's (CPM) significant losses in
the May panchayat (local, district and village-level) elections
was the erosion of Muslim support. This growing Muslim
disaffection was prompted by the 2007 Sachar Committee report
highlighting the lower soci-economic conditions of the Muslim
community, and perceptions that the CPM-led state government's
land acquisition for industrial development disproportionately
impacted poor Muslim farmers. The panchayat election results
and statements by senior government officials indicated that
many Muslims abandoned the Communist party, traditionally seen
as the Muslims' secular protector in the face of Hindu
nationalism. Muslims have formed an umbrella group of smaller
Muslim political parties to protect themselves, sometimes
violently from land acquisition proposed by the state
government. Recognizing the growing Muslim opposition, the GOWB
has delayed acquisition of land for industrial projects and
intends to direct government programs to the Muslim community.
The Muslim disillusionment with the CPM does not reflect an
Islamic radicalization but rather a response to perceptions that
the CPM has done little for the community. However, Muslim
feelings of alienation could be exploited by radical individuals
or groups if allowed to fester. End Summary.


2. (SBU) The CPM-led Left Front's losses in four West Bengal
districts in the May panchayat (local body) elections,
especially in Muslim-dominated areas, reflected the party's
eroding support among the minority community. The CPM
experienced big losses in East Midnapore, the district where
land acquisition violence occurred in the past year around
Nandigram, and in South 24-Parganas -- two districts where
Muslims have a significant presence. In addition, the combined
effects of land disputes over a new Tata car factory, slow
economic development and violence by CPM cadres also resulted in
significant losses in Singur, Hooghly district. The CPM's own
data show a general decline in Muslim support as now only 14.67
per cent of its members in West Bengal are Muslim (as of 2007),
down from 14.90 per cent in 2004 and 15.2 per cent in 2001.
Yet, Muslims constitute by some estimates almost a third of the
state's population. In absolute terms, of the CPM's 321,682
members in West Bengal only 47,190 are Muslim.


3. (SBU) CPM leaders have admitted that farmers' fears of land
acquisition for industry and the lack of development for the
minority Muslim community as described in the 2007 Sachar
Committee report contributed the slide in Muslim support. In a
June 10 meeting with ConGen, WB Chief Minister Buddhadeb
Bhattacharjee acknowledged that Muslim farmers are apprehensive
about losing their land. Bhattacharjee admitted candidly that
the Muslims appeared to have voted against the CPM during the
recent local body elections. The Chief Minister claimed that
some "extremist elements" within the Muslim community were
active in fostering anti-Communist sentiment. He specifically
mentioned West Bengal Jamaat-e-Ulema-Hind (JUH) State Secretary
Siddiqullah Choudhury as a local Muslim leader seeking to
exacerbate anti-CPM feelings. He added that Choudhury financed
his activities from fees in granting halal or Islamic
certification for food products. (Note: ConGen met Choudhury
in 2007, which was widely protested by CPM officials as foreign
interference. Post has no information regarding Choudhury's
"extremist" activities; however, other law enforcement officials
have said that Choudhury has religious fundamentalist links.
End Note.)


4. (SBU) On June 11, West Bengal Chief Secretary Amit Kiran Deb
also told ConGen that there was a definite unhappiness among
Muslims towards the CPM in the recent local body elections.
However, he added that Muslim voting against the CPM may not
persist if the government addresses some of their concerns and
provides better government services, education and employment
opportunities. Deb also said that the state government has
slowed the process of acquiring 5,000 acres of land needed for
creation of a new airport.

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Nandigram Shows the Way
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5. (SBU) Political Scientist Sabyasachi Basu Roychowdhury noted
that previously during the early 1990's that the GOWB had taken
land for industrial and housing projects in Falta and Rajarhat
areas, which also had significant Muslim populations. However,
objections were muted due to the fear of the CPM's strength.
Last year's efforts to acquire land in Nandigram in East
Midnapore district, was a watershed as it demonstrated that the

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CPM could be challenged. Much of the violence was in two blocks
in the Nandigram village area that had around a 58 percent
Muslim population. Other areas which were earmarked for land
acquisition were Bhangur and Dankuni, which have Muslim
populations of over 30 per cent. The GOWB put the Dankuni
development project and land acquisition on hold following the
panchayat elections. Roychowdhury felt that the Muslims learned
from the Nandigram experience that peaceful protests had failed
in the past and that only through the violence had land
acquisition been elevated to a serious political issue.


6. (SBU) Roychowdhury believed that for the Muslims strong,
violent protest was the only way to stop the CPM's intimidation.
Whether accurate not, among the Muslim community he felt that
there was a pervasive feeling that the CPM-led state government
was intent on taking over the land where Muslims were in
majority and depended on land for their livelihood.
Particularly in East Midnapore and Hooghly districts, Muslim
fears escalated with the feeling that CPM was not maintaining
its secular principles. However, Roychowdhury stressed that the
Nandigram violence committed in March and November 2007 was
political and not communal. The protest by the local villagers
was over proposed land acquisition and not on religious issues,
he added. However, the voting pattern which led to the Left
Front's losses showed that Muslims appeared to have voted
against the CPM in significant numbers. As a result, for the
first time in 31 years, the election results reflected a
distinct dent in the Left's rural support base.

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Muslim Have Groups But Not Organized
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7. (SBU) As a sign of the coalescing Muslim political identity
and activism which has taken place in the last year, eight
Muslim organizations in West Bengal, with differing ideological
and political stands, created a coalition to tackle the
"indifferent" attitude of the state government towards
minorities. The Council, named the Milli Ittehad Parishad
(MIP),was constituted in September 2007 with representation
from several Muslim organizations, including the Jamaat-e-Islami
Hind, Shahri Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadith, Milli Council, Sunnat
Aljamaat, Shia Asna Asari and the Muslim Institute. The Council
is led by Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind's Siddiqullah Choudhury and has
the patronage of the Muslim Majlis-e-Mushawarat and Qari Fazlur
Rahman, Imam-Eidain (Imam who leads the largest congregation of
prayer on the day of Id).


8. (SBU) In West Bengal the JUH historically has been close to
the Congress party and relatively quiet until the Nandigram land
acquisition became violent. Following Nandigram, Choudhury
began a strident anti-CPM campaign on the issue of land
acquisition targeting Muslims. Sources add that Muslim
activists, who were normally "loyal" to the ruling Left Front,
had extended their support to the MIP's call of voting against
the CPM. However, Muslim contacts admit that the community is
not homogenous and it lacks specific political agendas. The
Muslim parties have both fundamentalist as well as liberal
elements and have little cohesion. The MIP members found a
strong leader in Choudhury and rallied around him hoping to be
part of the agitations. Land acquisition inflamed the common
Muslim farmer and Chowdhury became the visible face of the
protests.

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CPM Appeasing Muslims
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9. (SBU) The erosion of CPM's Muslim votes, indicated by the
rural poll results, has prompted the CPM-led GOWB to start a
survey to assess the weak development in the Muslim community
and to find out ways to address the community's problems. The
GOWB has also announced that it is considering reservations in
government jobs for the Muslims. West Bengal's Finance Minister
Asim Dasgupta has raised the budget for the minority affairs
department from USD 42 million to USD 75 million and each
government department has created a special fund for minority
development and madrasa education. The government also has
plans to recruit about 1,000 madrasa teachers by 2008 and around
4,000 in the next three years. There are about 10,000 madrasa
teachers at present. Minority Affairs Minister Dr. Abdus Sattar
told the press that that the state government will assess the
level of literacy and basic services like clean drinking water,
toilets, roads and health facilities provided to the minority or
the Muslim community.


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Comment
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10. (SBU) The CPM was not targeting Muslim farmers specifically
when its Party members sought to enforce the GOWB's efforts to
acquire land for industrial development. Rather, the Muslim's
growing population in the state and their incidental presence in
the areas intended for industrial development put them in
conflict with the CPM. Historically, the CPM had used the
Muslims as a vote bank, turning a blind eye to illegal migration
from Bangladesh and liberally providing ration and voting cards
to all. The CPM had until recently successfully portrayed
itself as a strictly secular party and defender of Muslims
against Hindu nationalists. In the fallout of the violence
around Nandigram and Singur villages, in which Muslims were
attacked by CPM cadres, the CPM experienced a backlash among the
Muslim community.


11. (SBU) Comment Continued: Some Muslim groups and leaders
such as Siddiqullah Choudhury have taken advantage of this
political shift to project themselves as representing the
community's interests. So far the Muslim disillusionment with
the CPM is being directed to forming political associations or
groups such as the MIP, which in a positive sense channels
Muslim disaffection within the existing political process.
Muslims may simply shift their vote or interests from the CPM to
Muslim parties. However, the broader concern is that Muslim
alienation could also provide a receptive environment in which
radical groups or individuals could operate. In response, the
GOWB will need be sensitive to the impact of its land
acquisition on the Muslim community and will have to follow
through on its plans to improve the Muslim community's access to
education, health care and employment to address the issues
outlined in the Sachar Commission Report. However, the state
government has a poor record in planning and in providing basic
public services in general. Rather, Muslim disaffection will
likely continue and radicalization of some members of the
community is a distinct possibility.
JARDINE