Murshidabad: The purported video of former Trinamool Congress MLA Humayun Kabir claiming BJP has entered into a Rs 1,000 crore deal with him to defeat Mamata Banerjee and that he is in touch with senior BJP leaders in West Bengal has kicked up a political storm in the state, just 11 days before elections.
Following the controversy, Asaduddin Owaisi’s All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), which had entered into an alliance with Kabir’s Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) ahead of the elections, walked out of it. The developments have not only put a question mark on Kabir’s political future but also the fate of the masjid he is building in Murshidabad’s Beldanga.
Kabir was expelled from the Trinamool Congress in December 2025 soon after he announced he would build a masjid, modelled after the now demolished Ayodhya Babri Masjid, by raising funds from the Muslim community. This had generated lot of buzz in the community.
A month after this, Kabir launched the Aam Janata Unnayan Party (AJUP) and announced that his party would contest in the upcoming assembly elections. The AJUP got a boost after Owiasi formed an alliance with them and the two parties decided to contest in 192 out of the 294 seats. This arrangement is now in disarray after the video leak.
The AJUP-AIMIM alliance projected itself as an alternative political platform for Muslims in Bengal, who had mostly gravitated towards the Trinamool Congress (TMC)) and to some extent the Congress after the collapse of the Left-led government in 2011 after a 34-year reign. The AJUP-AIMIM alliance had the potential to split the Muslim votes in Bengal.
The Babri masjid promise
Kabir’s announcement to build a Babri masjid has generated interest in the state, which has a 27 per cent Muslim population.
He told ThePrint last week in Murshidabad that preparatory work for building the masjid had already started. The West Bengal Islamic Foundation of India, the trust that he formed to execute the project, has already acquired approximately 8 acres of private land in Beldanga for Rs 13 crore.
The cost of building the entire masjid will be approximately Rs 86 crore, Kabir said.
At the site, boards have come up with ‘Babri Masjid’ written on them. Preparatory work has begun. The ground where the masjid will come up has been dug, the boundary wall is in the process of being erected. A Babri masjid committee has been set up to oversee the day-to-day work. The committee even has an office on the masjid site.
“We plan to complete the masjid by 2030. We have currently put all construction activity on hold because of the model code of conduct. Work will restart after May 4. Whatever work has happened till now has been done with money donated by the public,” Kabir said.
The masjid site has become a big draw for people from the community, who are visiting in hordes everyday. A tent has been put up at the site and everyday around 50-100 people, not only from adjoining districts but from states like Assam, throng the site to see the work underway. Several food stalls have come up at the site and are doing brisk business. Last week when ThePrint visited the site early evening, close to a 100 visitors were there.
Monirul Kabiraj, a resident of the neighbouring Nadia district was one of them. He had come with his family to visit the masjid site. “Babri masjid is a matter of faith for us. I had heard about the masjid from my friends. So, I came with my family to see what is happening here.”
Aminal Islam, resident of Murshidabad’s Khargram village, was another visitor. Ïslam said he had come to Beldanga for a wedding and decided to use the opportunity to visit the masjid site.
Kabir told ThePrint that he will eventually acquire a 19-acre piece of land next to the masjid and build a 500-bed hospital and other facilities for Muslims. “The overall project cost will come to around Rs 500 crore. Like the masjid, we will build all these facilities with donations from the public.”
But Friday’s incident has now cast a cloud over the project’s future.
(Edited by Viny Mishra)
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