New Delhi, Nov 9 (IANS) All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) Chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Sunday hit back at Samajwadi Party MP Afzal Ansari, who had challenged him to contest elections from a constituency where Muslims are in a minority, saying that such comments reflect ignorance about how his party works on the ground and its inclusive approach.

Speaking to IANS, Owaisi said, “What do they know about how we work in Hyderabad? They assume we don’t work for Hindus; that’s their ignorance. He doesn’t know our party has MLAs who used to throw newspapers; he has never seen my office, where I sit five days a week with open doors. Fifty per cent of the people who come are our Hindu brothers and sisters, mostly Dalits.”

He further said, “He doesn’t see that. He left the Communist Party to form Ekta Dal, then went to Behenji (Mayawati), then to Akhilesh. And now he’s talking about family. He needs to know that if somebody reads India’s Constitution, there’s a fundamental right, the Right to Equality, which talks about substantive equality, and we are supposed to achieve that equality.”

Earlier, Afzal Ansari, the brother of the late gangster-turned-politician Mukhtar Ansari, had said that Owaisi should prove his political strength by contesting from a non-Muslim-dominated seat. “Will Owaisi contest from a place where Muslims are in a complete minority? In Ghazipur, there are only nine per cent Muslims. I have been MLA five times and MP three times. Owaisi has as many MLAs across the country as there are in my family,” he had said.

Owaisi, who has been campaigning extensively across Bihar’s Seemanchal region, also spoke on issues of underdevelopment, discrimination, and neglect of the region.

He has accused rival parties of labelling Seemanchal residents as “infiltrators” and highlighted the collapse of education and healthcare systems.

Owaisi has also slammed RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav for calling him an extremist, saying, “His words clearly show that his heart is filled with hatred, because of which he thinks people with a beard and a topi are extremists. People are watching him.”

–IANS

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