M A I N   N E W S

Shahi Imam announces formation of political front
Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 10
Encouraged by the Assam experiment of Muslim clerics floating a new political outfit and winning 10 seats in recent assembly elections, Jama Masjid’s Shahi Imam Syed Ahmed Bukhari today announced the formation of an identical political front to contest the next elections in Uttar Pradesh.

The outfit proposed to be formed would be named Uttar Pradesh United Democratic Front (UPUDF), Bukhari said at a press conference here.

He said the necessity to float the UPUDF had arisen due to disenchantment of Muslims from the so-called secular parties during the past 57 years, as they had treated them merely as a vote bank.

“Our challenge will be to all established political parties,” he said. “All these years, Muslims supported parties that raised the slogan of secularism, but they failed to fulfil their promises,” he said.

He said efforts would be made to make the UPUDF wider by giving representation to all sections of society, including Christians, Dalits, Scheduled Tribes, backward classes and even upper caste Hindus.