Telangana Muslim Leaders Look to Congress for Fair Share of Assembly Tickets

Hyderabad: Political leaders from the Muslim community, which accounts for 12.69 per cent of the electorate as per the 2011 Census, are looking to Congress to allot them a fair share of Assembly poll tickets.

While the induction of BRS dissenters has not made their task easier, they are banking on an anti-BJP sentiment — on the lines of Karnataka, where Muslims voted en masse against the BJP — to get their share of poll tickets.

In Karnataka, the Congress gave 15 Assembly poll tickets to Muslim leaders, of whom nine won, two were made ministers and one made Speaker. The party also gave six MLC posts to Muslims in Karnataka.

Muslim leaders are seeking tickets from Khairatabad, Musheerabad, Jubilee Hills, Amberpet, Mahbubnagar, Warangal, and Khammam, and not in the Old City, where their chances would be slim.

Muslim votes play a major role in at least 40 Assembly constituencies. They account for 80,000 of Nizamabad’s electorate, 60,000 in Mahbubnagar, 40,000 in Karimnagar, 40,000 in Nalgonda and Adilabad, and 45,000 in Khammam. On average they account for 20,000 votes in each Assembly constituency.

Former Mahbubnagar DCC president Obaidullah Kotwal, in the post for 12 years and vying for the Mahbubnagar ticket, said: “I lost the seat last time owing to the TD alliance. I was incharge of Siriguppa in Karnataka and the party won by a margin of 37,000, which would not be possible without the 35,000 Muslim votes. There are more Muslims in Telangana for sure.”

Khammam Congress chief Javeed Mohammed said that the community was banking on the Congress, saying that many Muslim youth became doctors and engineers because of the four per cent reservation given during Dr. Y.S. Rajashekar Reddy’s tenure as Chief Minister.

Younis Sultan, who won on a Congress ticket in 1999, said that he was promised a ticket in 2014, but was denied one as part of a last-minute shuffle. “In 2018, the seat went to TD as part of the alliance. I should get my due this time,” he said.

Senior Congress leader Shabbir Ali told Deccan Chronicle, “The high command will do justice while factoring in social equality and other equations. We are seeking financial help from the party to help minority candidates.”