Telangana Elections 2023: All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) manifesto, promising to revoke “unconstitutional” religion-based reservations, including the 4% quota for Muslims, terming it as “BJP’s hate politics” ahead of the state elections.
Addressing a public rally at Malakpet, Hyderabad, Owaisi claimed that the removal of reservations equals depriving Muslims of employment opportunities. He mentioned that only listed Muslims in the backward class receive reservations, not all of them.
Owasi criticised Amit Shah for suggesting that all Muslims get reservations to incite hatred among Hindus, highlighting that removing reservations would deprive backwards and Pasmanda Muslims of job opportunities, claiming it as BJP’s politics of hatred.
“Amit Shah says that all Muslims get reservations to fill Hindus with hatred. Removal of reservation means depriving the backward and Pasmanda Muslims of employment opportunities,” Owaisi said, according to ANI.
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In a message to the scheduled tribes of Telangana, Owaisi urged them to boycott the BJP, accusing the party of aiming to end their tribal status. Addressing Amit Shah, he questioned: “I want to ask Amit Shah to give tax rebates to the Hindu Undivided family to everyone.”
Reacting further to Amit Shah’s statement, Owaisi referred to the sacrifices made for the 4% reservation and accused the Union minister of targeting Majlis.
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He warned that if the saffron party came to power in Telangana, the 4% Muslim reservation would be revoked. He also cautioned that the BJP, if given the chance, would implement the Uniform Civil Code in the state, recalling a campaign he ran in Andhra Pradesh advocating for this reservation.
What is BJP’s UCC promise?
The BJP’s manifesto, titled ‘Sakala Janula Saubhagya Telangana (welfare of the people)’, lacks mentions of farm investment support schemes like the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi’s (BRS) Rythu Bandhu or free power to the farm sector, which both the BRS and the Congress have pledged.
The manifesto states the party’s intent to form a committee to draft a new Uniform Civil Code for the state, a move already undertaken in other BJP-ruled states. It promises to redistribute the Muslim quota to OBCs, SCs, and STs. Shah reiterated the party’s commitment to appointing a Chief Minister from a Backward Class community.
Assembly elections in Telangana are scheduled for November 30, with vote counting set to be taken up alongside four other states on December 3.