New Delhi, June 04: Union agriculture minister and NCP chief Sharad Pawar seems to have become a lover of the minority community. In his bid to woo the minorities, he said most secular parties were taking Muslims for granted as they think the minorities have no alternative.
Though political circles view it as a dig at the Congress, an ally, the latter refused to join issue.
AICC general secretary Janardhan Dwivedi said: “ We do not comment on our allies”. Congress spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed said he would not comment as he did not know what Pawar had said.
“ Minority welfare is a long drawn process, but at least we should make a beginning. The NCP is working in that direction.
Some big parties — we do not claim we are a big party with 150 years of experience — tend to take the minorities for granted,” Pawar said at a party function here on Thursday.
He said there is a tendency among secular parties to take minorities for granted as they think the Muslims will not favour outfits like the RSS and the BJP. But if such an attitude gains ground among secular parties, it would lead to ignoring the genuine problems of minorities. “ This approach is wrong,” Pawar said.
—Agencies