Tamil Nadu minorities welfare minister A M Shahjahan

Tamil Nadu minorities welfare minister A M Shahjahan

The exchange began when Shahjahan, while listing schemes announced by the TVK govt for minorities, said 20 initiatives, including those for Christians, had been announced under the present regime. They cited, among other measures, the 3.5% reservation for Muslims introduced by the Karunanidhi-led DMK govt and said the AIADMK regimes too had implemented several schemes for minorities. The minister began his reply by thanking DMK leaders and other alliance partners for campaigning for the TVK’s victory, but his assertion that the present govt had announced several new schemes for minorities drew objections from DMK legislators.

Ansari said ignoring the contribution of the Dravidian parties to the socio-economic development of minorities would amount to being “ungrateful” and would not augur well. The announcements include establishing a college for women in Chennai, community halls in five districts for minorities, extending financial aid for Muslim girl students to pursue higher studies including medicine and engineering. Shahjahan lauded chief minister C Joseph Vijay for including the Indian Union Muslim League in the cabinet. Ansari and Manithaneya Makkal Katchi leader M H Jawahirullah intervened to list welfare schemes and development projects implemented by previous govts.

CHENNAI: A war of words erupted in the Tamil Nadu assembly on Friday between minorities welfare minister A M Shahjahan and DMK MLA M Thamimun Ansari over the Dravidian parties’ contribution to minority welfare, with Ansari accusing the TVK govt of projecting its schemes as unprecedented while glossing over the initiatives of successive DMK and AIADMK govts.

Recalling Vijay’s visit to the IUML office, he said the party had played a pivotal role in the formation of several govts in the past, but Vijay was the first chief minister to visit its office. He said the govt would uphold secularism.