Hyderabad: Congress has decided to launch a massive outreach to connect with the minorities across Telangana State and get their support in the next Assembly elections.
The decision was taken in the first meeting of the ‘Minorities Declaration Committee’ held at Gandhi Bhavan on Monday, August 21. The committee, chaired by TPCC PAC convener & former minister Mohammed Ali Shabbir as its chairman, was attended by AICC incharge Manikrao Thakre, AICC secretary Mansoor Ali Khan and all committee members.
Briefing the media after the meeting, Shabbir Ali informed that the committee had a detailed discussion for nearly three hours on various issues about minorities. He said that the 4% Muslim reservation and other welfare schemes introduced by the previous Congress regime benefitted over 20 lakh poor Muslim families since 2005-06. However, he said that the welfare of minorities came to a halt after TRS came to power in 2014.
He accused chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao of ‘completely neglecting’ the minorities’ welfare by depriving funds and manpower while finishing the representation of minorities from all government bodies as a part of a larger conspiracy. He pointed out there were six Muslim MLCs during the Congress regime. But under the KCR regime, their number got reduced to just one.
“Similarly, there is not a single Muslim among the 11 vice-chancellors and the community has no representation in the Telangana Public Service Commission (TSPSC),” he said.
Shabbir Ali said that the Minorities Declaration Committee would interact with the Muslim and Christian religious organisations, professionals, managements of minority institutions, civil society members and all other stakeholders. He said the suggestions of all sections of the minority communities would be collected, polished and compiled to prepare a draft declaration.
Other TPCC leaders including senior vice-president Zafar Javeed, working president Mohammed Azharuddin, minorities wing chairman Shaik Abdullah Sohail, Azmathullah Hussaini, Obedullah Kothwal, Deepak John, Uzma Shakir, Prof MD Riyaz, Mohammed Faheem Qureshi, Khusro Pasha Biyabani, Ezekiel Birdudugadda and Rashed Khan were present.
