Hyderabad: Stating that the Congress was the real alternative to the MIM in the Old City, TPCC chief N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Saturday expressed confidence that the party will bag a majority of the seats in the GHMC polls.
Mr Reddy said that the massive turnout at a public meeting at the Khilwat Grounds on Friday was proof of the popularity of the Congress.
“It was the biggest public meeting organised by the Congress in the Old City in recent times. Let me admit that we never thought of venturing into these areas earlier due to our strategic alliance with the MIM. We had left those areas for the MIM in the past on the assumption that it would cater to the needs of people,” Mr Reddy said in a statement on Saturday.
Giving reasons for the Congress starting to make inroads into the Old City, he said, “We realised that instead of serving the people, MIM leaders were exploiting poor Muslims for personal gains. Shockingly, they aligned with the BJP and other communal forces while targeting the Congress which nourished them at all stages.”
Mr Reddy said the communal approach of the MIM has tarnished the image of the Old City leaving no option for the Congress but to take on the MIM.
He added that the party collected feedback from all parts of the Old City on the living conditions and difficulties being faced by the people.
“We were shocked to learn that several areas in Old City lacked access to basic civic amenities and other needs like quality education and health. While elected representatives in other parts of the country fear their voters, the Old City residents were living in a state of fear,” the TPCC chief said.
He also slammed the TRS government for cheating Muslims with tall claims. “Only Rs 438 crore of the Rs 1,030 crore allocated in the 2014-15 Budget for Minorities Welfare was spent,” he said.
