Kolkata, March 25 – Asaduddin Owaisi denied on Wednesday the allegations made by the Trinamool Congress that his party, the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), was receiving funding from the BJP to contest in minority-dominated Assembly constituencies in the upcoming two-phase Assembly elections in West Bengal, solely to divide minority voters in favor of the saffron camp.
"If that is the case, I am ready to give 90 per cent of the funding to Trinamool Congress general secretary, Abhishek Banerjee. I will retain just five per cent, and give the remaining five per cent to my brother, Humayun Kabir," Owaisi said at a press conference in Dum Dum, on the northern outskirts of Kolkata, on Wednesday.
Present at the press conference was Humayun Kabir, who had recently launched his own political entity, the Aam Aadmi Unnayan Party (AAUP), after being suspended from the Trinamool.
AIMIM and AAUP have a seat-sharing agreement for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections, and the two parties are contesting from several constituencies in the state, with the main focus being on minority-dominated constituencies.
Rubbishing the Trinamool Congress' allegation that AIMIM is funded by the BJP in West Bengal, Owaisi raised the counter question: Did his party have any role in improving the saffron camp's tally in the West Bengal Assembly from just three in 2016 to 77 in 2021?
"When did the BJP have three MLAs? In 2016, right? Now they have 77—did I do that? How many MPs did the BJP have earlier, and how many do they have now? Did I do that? But I haven't become so powerful, have I?" Owaisi questioned.
He also stated that he is well-aware of the AIMIM's strength, and his party will contest in the West Bengal Assembly polls based on that.
Speaking on the occasion, he also accused the Trinamool Congress and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of exploiting Muslims and their sentiments.
"Mamata Banerjee won successive elections in West Bengal, receiving overwhelming support from minorities. However, minorities in West Bengal have remained marginalized. After winning successive elections, the Trinamool Congress government has done nothing for the minorities," Owaisi claimed.