Hyderabad: Telugu Desam Party leader and president of the minority rights protection committee in Andhra Pradesh, M Farooq Shibli, strongly responded to the plans of the AIMIM party to re-enter Andhra Pradesh politics.
AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, during a public meeting on September 17, hinted at returning to Andhra Pradesh and working there. Shibli questioned Asaduddin’s sudden focus on the state and wondered if it was due to the upcoming elections.
“Previously, you came and left after saying ‘Jagan is my friend.’ You were absent for the past four and a half years, and now suddenly you remember there are Muslims in Andhra Pradesh. The people of Andhra Pradesh understand your intentions and are unlikely to support you,” he remarked.
During the public meeting, Asaduddin Owaisi had suggested that the people of Andhra Pradesh should not trust TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu and that chief minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy is a better choice than Naidu.
Shibli further pointed out that AIMIM had been silent on crucial issues affecting the Muslim community in Andhra Pradesh, such as the Abdul Salam case, where a man and his entire family tragically committed suicide, or the Hajira Begum case.
“In this region, people have not received government benefits and welfare schemes. You stayed away from Andhra Pradesh all these years, and now you want to come here, perhaps due to directives from your higher-ups,” Shibli added.
He emphasized that Muslims are well aware of AIMIM’s history and can distinguish between what is beneficial and detrimental to them.
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