Hyderabad: Congress leader and Hyderabad Lok Sabha constituency in charge Mohammed Waliullah Sameer on Tuesday accused AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi of diverting Muslim voters from the crucial issue of vote chori, being raised by Rahul Gandhi , by shifting the political discourse in the Uttar Pradesh election campaign towards community-specific leadership.
Reacting to Owaisi’s recent speeches in Azamgarh and Rampur asking Muslims to stop depending on Gandhi-Nehru or Yadav leadership and develop their own political leadership, Sameer Waliullah said the timing was significant. The first battle is to protect the vote,” he said. “At a time when Rahul Gandhi is asking whether every eligible citizen’s vote is safe, Owaisi wants Muslims to debate who their leader should be. If your name itself disappears from the voter list, what meaning does any debate over leadership have?
These statistics are facts, which is why the “Owaisi is a vote katwa” question cannot simply be dismissed as political propaganda, alleged Sameer Waliullah. When AIMIM polls more votes than BJP’s victory margin in close contests, people have every right to question its intention behind contesting in so many seats but entering the electoral battle from only a few seats in home state Telangana, said Sameer Waliullah. Sameer Waliullah said Muslim voters should remain alert to what he described as two separate dangers.
“First, there is the danger of vote chori through alleged irregularities in electoral rolls. Then, there is vote katwa politics. Muslims must understand both,” he appealed to them.