Hyderabad: All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) supreme Asaduddin Owaisi in an interview speaks on critical issues surrounding elections this year.
His party is contesting eight seats in Telangana while supporting the TRS in the slated state Assembly elections this December 7.
Supporting the developments, the TRS ruling party has made so far in Hyderabad, Mr Owaisi is pretty confident about TRS coming to power for the second consecutive time and AIMIM retaining not only its seven Assembly constituencies but also winning in other constituencies too.
Opposing to one being called only ‘secular’ if he vouches for Congress and a ‘Nationalist’ if he opts for BJP party is the most basic debate in India that haunts people and has created a rift between majority and minority communities of India.
“A substantial number of people do not agree to this mindset, especially the regional parties and parties like me. We feel we should chalk out an independent course of action and that’s what we are doing,” Mr Owaisi added.
He also questions to why he should not expand his party or to why he should support a party who has been so far been deceiving people in the name of secularism, i.e. Congress.
Come what may, we have to oppose BJP because of its ideology and Hindutva ideologues backing it he affirms.
When asked if TRS is getting close to BJP, as it seemed, earlier, before elections, Mr Owaisi responded there is no BJP in the Telangana state, in fact, BJP will lose some of the five seats they have.
Neither of the contesting national parties has given an appropriate number of seats to Muslims and Muslims are not born to vote for parties giving any importance to the community.
Why should we or even TRS join Congress? Mr. Owaisi asked, saying that it was Congress’s failures that BJP is now in power. Had Congress delivered what it promised, BJP would not have been in this position today, Indian Express reports.
Though a section of the community is politically represented, it’s issues and developments are not addressed at all and that is the hypocrisy of Congress and the BJP.
Speaking about Madhya Pradesh were Muslims were given only three tickets, Mr Owaisi asked for the whole of Madhya Pradesh, you have just four Muslims contesting.
“If I dared to say the same thing like what Rahul said that his party is with Hindus, just in a different way, the nationalists would have slaughtered me from 6 pm to 9 pm.
Just because Rahul Gandhi said it, it is fine, janeu-dhari Hindu is fine but me I m not a part of this Varna system so where should I go then?” he asks.
When asked about how many constituencies his party can influence and swing for TRS, he replied: “As leader of my party, I would say every constituency. This Prajakutami is nothing but East India Company 2018.”
N Chandrababu Naidu, sitting in Amaravati, and Congress sitting in Delhi, or even BJP or RSS cannot become masters of destiny in Telangana.
On questions of Congress leader asking him to cancel his rally and offering him Rs 25 Lakhs, Mr Owaisi said, there is this audio available now where you can hear Congress leader speaking to my party member.
“In order to just hold me back, you first call me a communal person, then you say he is in cohorts with the BJP and when it does not work, you say ‘we have enough money, you take it’?” he questions.
Speaking on Kashmir issues, he said Mehbooba Mufti is equally to be blamed for the alliance with BJP.
It is because of this alliance, educated young people with PhDs are picking up arms.