FAIZABAD: "Ye Islam ki aur uske Nabi ki seekh hai ke tum sachche Musalmaan nahi agar khud aaram se khana kha kar so jao aur tumhara padosi bhookha reh jae (This is the teaching of Islam and its Prophet that you're not a Muslim if you go to bed satiated while your neighbour goes hungry)," blares the microphone as Bazmi Siddiqui , the only Muslim candidate this year and the first one ever to be fielded by a mainstream national party to contest the religiously significant and politically controversial Ayodhya seat, makes his speech.It is evening and BSP 's Siddiqui is addressing a mix crowd of Dalits and Muslims at the Mahobra Bazar crossroad at one of the many back-to-back jan sabhas. Under a faint white light, Siddiqui seeks votes on brotherhood, peace and unity with references to Islam's teachings.Amid claps and frequent acknowledgements of 'sahi baat hai', Siddiqui continues his address, first in Awadhi, forming an instant connection, and then moves to Urdu and Hindustani, calling himself the 'beta' and 'bhai' of the mixed gathering."SP aur BJP ka vidhayak dekh liya ab ek mauka BSP ka bhi deibey. Jhamajham sarkar chalegi jaise behenji ki chalti hai. Unka bitwa tumhaar bitwa se jada sundar toh naahi ke eeke liye ote diebo (You have seen an MLA from both the SP and the BJP. Now give a chance to BSP too. Your son is no less good looking than their sons — Akhilesh and Rahul — that you vote on that criteria), he says, leaving the crowd in splits."Ladke ki sacchai se bahot prabhavit hun main. Agle saal peace party ko ote deen tha, eeh baar haathi," said 85-year old Mohd Siddiq. "His being a Muslim is another winning factor," added another villager Waseem.At another jan sabha in Rekabganj area, Siddiqui claims, "You know why behenji chose a Muslim for this seat? So that we establish the milestone of Hindu-Muslim unity in Ayodhya that has been used by BJP to send out a wrong communal message."Earlier in the day, Siddiqui's convoy of five white SUVs with fluttering blue flags had crossed the Pura Bazar crossing, 14 kilometres ahead of Faizabad.Even before the dust could settle, Siddiqui would, in one swift motion, jump out of the front seat and start greeting people with folded hands while his supporters distributed party pamphlets to villagers.Barauli village, off Pura Bazar, has a population of around 400 people with a majority of Dalit voters (Kori and Paasi) and OBC (Kurmi) who claim they vote in bulk. "Humey ookey musalmaan hone se kauno matlab naahi," says Shyamwati, a villager. "Heeya ote haathi pe jaat hai (The vote here goes to the BSP)," adds Golu.As he moves ahead, crisscrossing the many Dalit majority villages in Faizabad district, Siddiqui makes it a point to lay stress on the 'haathi'.Having been a stronghold of the BJP for 25 years with its MLA Lallu Singh, it was in 2012 that SP's Tej Narayan alias Pawan Pandey snatched the sought after Ayodhya seat from the BJP."The SC population here is 80,000 and Muslims around 60,000. Even if there be 70% voting from these two fractions, capturing 55,000 votes from SCs and over 30,000 from Muslims will ensure my win. BJP looted Lord Ram and SP robbed its father. Leave aside a wave, it's BSP's storm this time ," says Siddiqui, the 31-year-old father of three girls outside his Reedganj home.

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