The Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen has taken a serious note of the ‘illegal’ arrest of its legislators and decided to take a call on continuing support to the government.
The crucial decision will be taken at the party’s executive meeting convened on Monday.
“We will take a final decision on extending support to the Congress government in the State and Centre,” announced party president Asaduddin Owaisi.
Addressing a crowded press conference at the party office in Darussalam on Sunday, he said a meeting of the Muslim United Forum, an umbrella group of Muslim organisations, was also called on Wednesday to chalk out the future course of action. The government was wrong if it thought it could browbeat the Majlis with arrests. “We will fight persecution and take the fight to its logical conclusion,” Mr. Owaisi warned.
He said the Majlis never hankered for power as serving the minorities was its cause. Mr. Owaisi held Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy directly responsible for the arrests of the Majlis legislators. Just to please the Sangh Parivar, government had allowed a tarpaulin to be placed over the Bhagyalaxmi temple adjacent to Charminar contrary to the directions of the High Court.
He saw a conspiracy in the Archaeological Survey of India foreman at Charminar giving a report that the temple had a tarpaulin as on October 30. By doing so the Kiran Kumar government had revived the Babari Masjid tragedy. “Surprisingly the government has chosen the minority day to bare its communal mindset,” Mr. Owaisi remarked.
He said Home Minister Sabita Indra Reddy had spoken to him on phone on Saturday night and assured that status quo would be maintained but today’s events turned out to be different. “In a democracy government can’t be run with police force,” he said.
The Majlis leader objected to the telephones of his party legislators getting disconnected soon after their arrest. He said the Majlis would not take to street protests and urged the people to remain calm.
