Cong to boycott govt’s Iftar party

Party demands that the Chief Minister fulfil his promise to provide 12 per cent reservation for Muslims

Hyderabad: Congress party has decided to boycott the official Iftar party hosted by the TRS government on Sunday and the one which the Governor E S L Narsimhan would be hosting on Friday.

The TPCC leaders, including its president N Uttam Kumar Reddy, criticised the government for announcing some sops like free distribution of clothes instead of taking a decision in regard to providing 12 per cent reservation for Muslims and SIT probe into Alair encounter.

The TPCC felt that by organising Iftar party, the government was planning to woo the Muslims with an eye on the GHMC elections. Hence the TPCC would be hosting its own iftar party and the AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh would be attending it.

The TPCC leaders said the TRS had not deemed it fit to extend invitation to Congress leaders to “At Home” hosted in honour of the President, Pranab Mukherjee. During a party meeting held on Wednesday, Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that the Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao was trying to take the Muslim for a ride by hosting Iftar party, so that they would not question him on his promise of providing 12 per cent reservation for them.

He called upon the community to fight for their genuine rights rather falling prey to gimmicks of KCR like distribution of Rs 500 worth clothes. “Muslims must remain vigilant to KCR’s tactics who failed to fulfil the promise of 12 percent reservation within 4 months after coming to power,” he said.

The change of guard for Minority Cell of the TPCC is also believed to be part of the strategy to woo Muslims in the upcoming GHMC elections and to take on MIM in some parts of Old city. In fact the leaders of the Cell wanted the TPCC to give a call to all its units across the state not to attend government’s Iftar parties.