Berhampore: Emerging from the sunroof of his black SUV, cricketer-turned-politician Yusuf Pathan waves at the crowd swarming around the vehicle. Cheers of “Yusuf Bhai” rend the air as Pathan shifts to an open jeep while security personnel try to clear a path through the crush. Adjusting his safari hat to shield himself from the blazing sun, an unfazed Pathan shakes hands with his supporters as he moves along.
The road show is taking place in Murshidabad’s Begunbari, part of the Berhampore Lok Sabha constituency, from where West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has fielded Pathan as the Trinamool Congress (TMC) candidate.
In this election, he faces a formidable opponent, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, a five-time MP from the Congress. Although their parties both belong to the INDIA bloc, here they are direct competitors. The BJP’s candidate is Dr Nirmal Kumar Saha. The constituency goes to polls on 13 May.
As an ‘outsider’ from Gujarat, Pathan’s work is cut out for him, but he’s going all out to win voters, from reaching out to Pasmandas—disadvantaged groups within the Muslim community—to promising a sports academy, to vowing to spend the rest of his life in Berhampore after elections to serve the people.
For Pathan, Pasmandas could be the key to making inroads in the constituency, and he’s doing whatever he can to woo them. He is urging them to choose a Parliament representative who can raise the issues of Pasmanda Muslims and assuring them that he won’t decamp to Delhi if he wins the elections.
In Murshidabad, where Berhampur Lok Sabha constituency falls, 66 percent of the population is Muslim, and 12.6 percent belong to Scheduled Castes.
Earlier this month during Ram Navami, communal clashes broke out in Berhampur’s Saktipur, where Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is scheduled to hold a public meeting on April 30. Analysts told ThePrint that Adityanath’s visit may help consolidate Hindu votes. Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, notably, has not visited the constituency since the clashes
Pathan’s attire and demeanour set him apart from typical politicians; he wears a shirt and trousers rather than the traditional white kurta. Still learning the ropes of politics, he uses his cricket career with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to connect with the people.
“Bengal is not new for me because I have been coming to the state since 2011 to 2017 to play cricket here,” Pathan told ThePrint. “I have lived among the people of Bengal.”
Also Read: ‘Who else is there to vote for?’ — why Muslim clerics are rallying behind TMC in West Bengal
A politician in training
When Pathan arrived in Berhampore last month, he was paired with a consultant from the political consultancy IPAC and an associate close to Mamata Banerjee. Their role was to guide him through his baby steps in politics.
“It started with making him understand the demography of the region, the party structure, and the hierarchies,” said a TMC source who has observed this training process. “Even small things such as what is the role of zila parishad we had to make him understand. He was very open but took time to learn.”
As a newcomer to politics, Pathan is cautious, aiming to avoid any controversies. He chooses his words carefully when speaking to the media. Party sources say Pathan has learnt Mamata Banerjee’s women schemes by heart and holds jan sabhas to talk about his key planks.
“People have come to me and said that there is no development. Their MP is in Delhi and is not able to pass any funds. I am going to change that for them,” said Pathan.
One of the most emotive issues in Berhampore is workforce migration, and Pathan addresses this concern directly. He promises to create local jobs to prevent Muslims from falling behind economically.
“In Mamata’s government, imams and muezzins are getting honorariums. But Chowdhury has not done anything for you. I promise you that once I am elected to power, I will provide jobs to my Berhampore brothers so that they don’t have to travel to different states and can live with their family here,” said Pathan in a speech last week.
At one of his jan sabhas this week, he also pledged to build sports facilities to nurture local talent. “This is my dream—to see a gold medalist from Berhampore. Will you help me in fulfilling this dream?” he asked, as the crowd broke out in cheers.
Why Yusuf Pathan?
The decision to field a celebrity in Berhampore was made upon the suggestion of IPAC, said TMC sources. Subsequently, it was purportedly Mamata’s nephew and MP Abhishek Banerjee who zeroed in upon Pathan as the ideal candidate from Berhampore.
“We had raised the demand to have a national celebrity face and to get a Muslim celebrity face was a goldmine. Abhishek Banerjee pursued Pathan and convinced him to join TMC. He was initially reluctant but eventually came around,” said a source privy to the developments in TMC.
Given the popularity of Congress MP Chowdhury and past failures to shake him from his perch, it was agreed that a Pathan could be the gust of fresh air that the TMC needed.
But he isn’t the first popular face that the party has put up in Berhampore. In 2014 and 2019 respectively, the TMC nominated singer Indranil Sen and well-known MLA Apurba Sarkar, neither of whom could make a big dent here. Yet, since Pathan is known nationally, the party is holding out hope that the third time could be the charm. There are also hopes that anti-incumbency may be growing against Chowdhury, whose margin of victory went from over 156,000 votes in 2014 to about 80,000 in 2019.
Another insider claimed that getting internal buy-in for Pathan’s candidacy took some time and wrangling.
“We had a meeting with the leaders who were unhappy with Pathan’s candidature. They were told that making the party win the Lok Sabha seat was our first priority,” said this source.
While Pathan is fielding attacks from the Congress about being a parachute candidate who has not worked for the constituency, the TMC team has rejoinders ready.
“We are asking people, what has Chowdhury done despite being a Bengali?” said a member of Pathan’s team. “Chowdhury has done no development work and is only accusing TMC of creating hurdles. If a MP can’t do your work, then who will?”
Despite being a political novice, Pathan could be a formidable challenger to Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury because of his religion and fame, said political analyst Suman Bhattacharyya.
“TMC is targeting this seat aggressively,” he said. “Pathan will make a huge difference because of his cricket and religion. This time it is a really tough challenge for Adhir Ranjan.”
Also Read: For ‘mahila’ voters in Bengal, making ends meet is priority & Mamata ‘didi’ their main benefactor
‘Don’t take me lightly’
In the 2021 assembly polls, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee saw substantial gains in Murshidabad district, securing 19 out of 21 assembly segments.
“The voters were divided between BJP and TMC and with Muslim population on the higher end, TMC gained,” Bhattacharyya said.
So far, despite its predominant Muslim population, Berhampore has never had an MP from the community. Indeed, none of the major parties even fielded a Muslim candidate. However, Congress volunteers criticise the nomination of Yusuf Pathan as an attempt at “Hindu-Muslim politics” by Mamata.
“Yusuf Pathan can’t even pronounce the names of places correctly. If Trinamool really wanted to field a Muslim face, why didn’t she pick one from Berhampore?” asked Congress worker Mohammad Mahibul Rehman. “By fielding Pathan, she is trying to cut into the Muslim votes. But Adhir will win, maybe with a narrower margin.”
Adding to the campaign’s star power, Pathan’s brother, Irfan Pathan, also a celebrated cricketer, will also be campaigning here.
“Don’t take me lightly because I am new to politics,” Pathan said to a news anchor during an interview session after the election campaign. “This is my political debut and wherever Pathans go, they emerge victorious.”
(Edited by Asavari Singh)