Shiv Sena woos Muslim voters through Urdu ads

Mumbai: Shiv Sena has begun poll propaganda against its biggest rival in the civic polls, the BJP. But that’s not the end. What makes the political war interesting is that it published the ad in Urdu in the Urdu dailies on Friday. It can be nothing but poll gimmick that the Sena which was once ‘intolerant of minorities’ is now reaching out to the community like never before. Publishing advertisements in Urdu in Urdu newspapers is one of the indicators.

It is irony that the party which is trying to woo Muslims has fielded a mere five candidates out of the 220-plus Sainiks in the fray. Ever since Sena and BJP decided against an alliance for BMC polls, leaders of Shiv Sena decided to use Muslims as vote bank.

Sajid Soopariwala who has launched poll campaign with Haji Arafat is hopeful that they will pick up a few more seats, especially in Govandi-Mankhurd area (a Muslim predominant area).

Meanwhile Muslims in Mumbai enjoy the daily exchange of barbs between BJP and Sena leaders these days. A community leader requesting anonymity said when Sena leaders call Narendra Modi a `feku’ publicly it is a source of relief for us.