No current Ansari face appears prominent as Sarwat Ansari, and Qazi Nizamuddin’s local political career may also be affected.

*By M. Haseen*

*Mangalore.* As the 2027 election season approaches, the question of the future of Ansari politics in this assembly constituency is becoming increasingly important. Will community politics become ineffective in the town? Will current Congress MLA Qazi Nizamuddin dismantle the concept of Ansariism and become the sole leader? The second question is, will this be good for his own political future?

Before discussing the issue further, it’s important to understand that not only Ansari votes but also Ansari politics are important in local politics. This is evident from the fact that in the last 25 years, Ansari faces have participated in six assembly elections here. They have contested five times and won twice. Similarly, the Ansari community has held the municipal council president post countless times. The current Municipal Council President, Muhiuddin Ansari, is also an Ansari. But now the question arises: will Ansari politics become ineffective? The only question is, is any Ansari face strong enough to contest the Assembly elections with equal rights?

Before the establishment of Uttarakhand, when this Assembly constituency was known as Laksar and was spread widely across the countryside, the Ansari community of Mangalore still held importance. The then MLA, Qazi Muhiuddin, who maintained a strong hold on this community, never allowed any outside leader to gain a foothold here. He would elect Chaudhary Akhtar Ansari as the Municipal Council President, thus keeping all of Mangalore firmly in his pocket. After the formation of Uttarakhand, Chaudhary Akhtar Ansari’s nephew, Sarwat Karim Ansari, established influence over the Ansari community and, instead of pursuing municipal politics under the patronage of Qazi Muhiuddin’s son, the current MLA, Qazi Nizamuddin, began contesting Assembly politics against him. This gave the Ansari community a new identity and expanded its influence. It’s a different matter that this equation also largely appealed to Qazi Nizamuddin. This ensured that assembly politics didn’t extend beyond Mangalore city. The Qazi versus Haji dynamic continued for a long time, as long as Sarwat Karim Ansari was alive.

But now, the situation has changed. After Haji Sarwat Karim Ansari’s death, many Ansari figures are on the scene. These include Haji Sarwat Karim Ansari’s son, Obaidur Rahman Ansari, and his brothers, as well as Chaudhary Akhtar Ansari’s son, Kaleem Ansari, Chaudhary Zulfikar Ansari, and his grandson. The current Municipal Council President, Muhiuddin Ansari, is also present, as is contractor Zulfikar Ansari, who lost the Municipal Council President election. But there isn’t a single figure who can single-handedly claim leadership of the Ansari community. Furthermore, there’s also the issue of outside the city. There is no Ansari face who can convey the message to Muslim, Dalit, Jat, and Gujjar voters outside the city that he is the sole representative of his community, both in and outside the city. There is no Ansari face who, on the strength of his influence, can force the BSP to support him like Haji Karim Ansari. Furthermore, there is no Ansari face who can openly oppose Qazi Nizamuddin and force the BJP to support him, preventing the Assembly elections from escalating beyond the city’s borders. Clearly, Qazi Nizamuddin also needs a strong Ansari face to emerge who can attract Ansari votes in the city and, especially, Dalit votes in the region. Muhiuddin Ansari is currently considered a loyalist of Qazi Nizamuddin, but his political standing is not sufficient to allow him to secure a BSP ticket and dictate his political alignment. Contractor Zulfikar Ansari, who contested the municipal president election in a near-contested tie, has been absent from politics since the election. This is certainly a crisis for the Ansari community and Ansari politics in Mangalore. And, in a way, for Qazi Nizamuddin’s local political career as well. While he is a senior official in his party, he will likely remain in office, but his future in state politics remains to be seen.