Telangana Muslim JAC declares support for Congress, hopes for implementation of Muslim Declaration demands

Saleem Pasha said that the JAC’s support to Congress in the next Lok Sabha elections will depend on the party’s commitment to implementing all the promises in its Minorities Declaration.

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JAC’s Muslim Declaration

The JAC, on 9 July, had issued the Muslim Declaration, outlining a set of 22 major demands aimed at fostering the advancement and progress of the Muslim community.

Civil liberties activist Prof G Haragopal and the late Zahiruddin Ali Khan, managing director of Siyasat daily, had issued the Muslim Declaration.

A meeting of the heads of the State Committee and District Committees of the JAC held in Hyderabad on 11 November expressed the opinion that all Muslims are leaning towards the Congress in the state and that it would be prudent to support the party in the upcoming Assembly elections.

The meeting felt that the BRS government had intentionally ignored its commitment to the Muslim population in the state. The reason for this is that there was the mutual political understanding with the BJP-led Union government for the last 10 years.

Those who attended the meeting said that they were aware of the clandestine cooperation between the BRS and the BJP.

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Criticism of the AIMIM

The AIMIM, the main Muslim party in the state, advocates supporting the ruling BRS, which has established a political alliance with the BJP, the JAC noted.

The BJP has also been criticised by the JAC for its implementation of citizenship regulations like those of the National Registry of Citizens (NRC) and and the Citizen’s Amendment Act (CAA).

Muslims are engaging in fervent protests against the BJP, which is propagating animosity against the community throughout the nation. In addition, the Muslim community is steadfast in its efforts to overthrow the BRS administration which has been supporting the BJP’s anti-national legislation, the JAC said.

The meeting characterised the BJP as lacking in moral principles, exhibiting authoritarian tendencies, promoting religious biases, and displaying elements reminiscent of fascism. The leaders felt that the re-election of the BJP posed a significant threat to the integrity of the Constitution of India.

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Congress outreach to Muslims

The JAC convenor said the BRS manifesto, which has been released, had failed to address the demands put forth by the Muslim JAC.

Every single demand went unheeded, and the promises made to Muslims were not addressed even in the whirlwind campaign. The issue of providing 12 percent reservation was also being overlooked, the JAC felt.

It was then the Congress party’s Minority Declaration Drafting Committee approached JAC.

“We were extended an invitation to a gathering that was attended by every representative of the Muslim community. The Congress expressed its commitment to carefully evaluate the objectives outlined in the Muslim JAC Declaration and it incorporated eight major demands outlined in it  into its own Minority Declaration,” the JAC convenor said.