MF will not contest 2024 elections
FOR the first time since 1994, the Minority Front will not be contesting the elections.
Party leader, Shameen Thakur-Rajbansi, made the shocking announcement in the KZN Legislature, last week.
She said the party would not be contesting the May 29 elections due to it’s failure to secure sufficient donations from well-wishers or the private sector.
She said that it was her time to say goodbye.
“A time comes in the life of each of us that we have to, for various reasons, say goodbye. My time has come. I will not be contesting the 2024 general elections and this is really hard for me to say.
“Among the reasons, the main one, is that our party, the Minority Front, did not secure any donations from well-wishers or from the private sector like we used to, up until 2014.
“Therefore, 2019 was also tough but I fought that election on a very tight budget. In 2024, such a situation, especially post Covid, is not possible,” she said.
Thakur-Rajbansi added that like her late husband, Amichand Rajbansi, she too had made a significant contribution to politics – spanning more than 25 years.
“As a woman, a wife, a mother, a daughter and a leader, I have made the necessary sacrifices - always. Some, too severe for any human to bear.
“But I have always persevered. My years in the KZN Legislature, the opportunities and the memories will always occupy a special place in my heart,” she added.
She appealed to the IEC and the private sector to make a ‘genuine effort to support women politicians financially’
“The cost of elections is a huge barrier for women’s political participation. Yet the voices of women in the halls of power are critical to shape our people’s lives.
“I do feel deeply for our communities but I hope that they will be taken good care of by those that come in, in the May general elections,” she said.
The MF was formed in 1993 by Rajbansi - known as the Bengal Tiger - who led the party until his death, in December 2011.
After his death, Thakur-Rajbansi, his widow, was voted in as the party’s leader in January 2012.
Former member of parliament for the MF, Roy Bhoola, said as a ‘protégé of the Bengal Tiger’, news of the party not contesting the election marked a deeply sombre moment for him.
“The fact that the MF is not contesting the elections marks the end of an era. It is the closing chapter of what the MF symbolised - a beacon of representation and advocacy for minority communities,” he said.
Bhoola, who represented the MF in the National Assembly from 2004 to 2014, said he had the privilege of working tirelessly to nurture and expand the party, guided by the vision of Rajbansi.
“Rajbansi believed fervently in the power of unity and servant leadership. He understood that without these foundational principles, the MF and its mission would face insurmountable challenges.
“Nearly a decade ago, we voiced our concerns about the future of the MF unless we embraced the ethos of servant leadership and emphasised unity among our ranks. Sadly, those warnings have materialised today,” he added.
Bhoola believes that Rajbansi's era was defined by leaders who served with humility and a singular commitment to the welfare of the people the party represented.
“It is this legacy that we must cherish and carry forward, even as the party itself ceases to have representation at the provincial and national level.
“While the MF may no longer be a political force, let us keep alive the spirit of unity and servant leadership that defined its finest hours.
“Our work continues beyond party lines, guided by the values that Amichand Rajbansi held dear. Together, let us honour his memory and strive for a society where every voice, especially those of minorities, is heard and respected,” he added.
Retired politician Kamal Panday, who shared a close relationship with Rajbansi since childhood, said he had a strong vision when he formed the party.
“He built the party to be a credible voice, more especially for the Indian communities. The party did excellent work. I don't know how Rajbansi would have felt about this.
“I think Shameen knows better. If she couldn't get funding or felt like this would have been a losing battle, and she could not fight the election without funding and decided to fold, she took the decision as a leader after getting her ducks in a row,” he said.
Panday added that there was a possibility that the party was still looking at contesting the local government elections in 2026, as they had representatives in the eThekwini council.
“The MF can still fight at the local level and it could be better for the party as at the grassroot level, the party can serve the people.
“Shameen must think deeply as this means that she is burying the MF and she should not do that,” Panday added.
He said the MF should look at bigger parties or other parties that they could align with.
“Rajbansi strived to make a difference and he did make a difference during his time. As the head of the MF, he became MEC for Sport and Recreation, and he had a lot of support.
“Even Mandela made mention that Rajbansi was a formidable force,” he said.
He questioned how Rajbansi would have felt about not contesting the elections if he were alive.
“Would he feel comfortable and accept the situation, or would he be angry?
Shane Hansraj, who was a member of the party from 1996 to 2016, said he felt sad to hear that the party ‘could disappear’.
“I suppose the party’s failure was due to them not being visible in the community.
“People will lose hope if a particular party is not serving the community. One cannot expect a party to grow or be around if they do not service the community effectively,” he said.
Hansraj added that he left due to problems the party experienced after Rajbansi’s death.
“We saw this coming. If Shameen worked with the members since the demise of Rajbansi, the party would have grown.
“In the last elections, the MF garnered about 13 000 votes and only secured one seat in the provincial legislature. I am afraid that if the MF fails to contest the upcoming election, they will never be able to recover from it,” Hansraj said.
Sanusha Naidu, a political analyst, said the MF had been through difficult times of late.
She added that there was a further challenge of economic distress, which made fundraising a difficult task for political parties.
“To contest is expensive, especially in a climate where funding and resources are difficult to mobilise. It is not something that the party can control. It is quite sad and we should be empathetic. The MF was an institution in its own right. They were a visible, active party. But parties who cannot sustain themselves create a trajectory in terms of their political footprint,” she added.
Naidu said the electoral landscape was competitive, with new political parties emerging and encroaching on resources.
“The MF could use the time to rebuild and reconstitute so that they can possibly reconfigure for the local government elections in 2026.
“The end of the days of the party would depend on if they get a donor and go more local,” Naidu added.