The outgoing Lok Sabha had the lowest representation of Muslims since 1952. Only 23 Muslim MPs made it to the Lok Sabha in 2014. This time the number has increased marginally. At the time of writing this story, 26 Muslim candidates were leading across in different constituencies in the country.
However, the number of Muslim MPs from the Congress is likely to be at an all time low of three.
The most important development in this respect is the victory of Imtiaz Jaleel, the All India Majlis-e-Itthadul Muslimeen candidate in Aurangabad, Maharashtra. For the first time since its inception, the AIMIM will have two MPs in Parliament. So far the party was restricted to its bastion Hyderabad that it has won continuously since 1984.
Jaleel’s win is particularly significant as Aurangabad isn’t a Muslim majority constituency. The community accounts for just about 25 percent of the electorate in the seat. It appears that a large chunk of Dalits also voted for Jaleel due to his alliance with Prakash Ambedkar’s Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi.