The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi today alleged that the Congress and BJP deliberately avoided talking about Muslim empowerment in the recently-concluded Gujarat Assembly elections.
"They deliberately avoided talking about Muslim empowerment and Muslim representation. The proof is that BJP did not give a single ticket to a Muslim. Congress gave six tickets and only three are now elected," a MIM release quoted him as saying.
Owaisi claimed that the numerous temple visits undertaken by leaders of both the parties were part of their "deliberate political marginalisation of Muslims".
"The temple-hopping which we have seen in the Gujarat election campaign was nothing but deliberate political marginalisation of Muslims of Gujarat which is not good for our democracy and polity in the long term," he said.
Alleging that both the parties used "religion as a vote- bank", Owaisi said he would go to mosques and dargahs and wear the green flag, the release stated.
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