HYDERABAD: Shia Companions, a Shia group based in Old City, has come up with a five-point charter of demand, an ultimatum of sorts, to candidates contesting from Yakutpura and Charminar constituencies. The group says that Shias will not vote for a candidate that does not sign the charter and would abstain from voting if no one signs it. The demands made in this document include the establishment of a separate Waqf Board for Shias and announcement of 1 per cent reservation to the community in government jobs, education and government schemes.
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Syed Ali Jaffry, a member of Shia Companions and Telangana BJP’s minority cell in-charge, claimed that Shias make up nearly 40 per cent of the Muslim vote in Charminar and Yakutpura but their representation in governance and administration remains minimal. “We want 1 per cent reservation within the existing 4 per cent reservation for Muslims. We do not care about TRS’ false promises of providing 12 per cent reservation,” he said.
Jaffry claimed that political parties did not field enough Shia candidates. “The last Shia MLA candidate was Syed Baqer Agha from Yakutpura in 1994, who contested against AIMIM’s Mumtaz Ahmed Khan. Since then, we have had no representation in electoral politics,” Jaffry said.
Shia Companions has also demanded that “an eminent educated member of Shia Muslim community be nominated as an MLA or an MLC under the Anglo-Indian category.” Citing the law, Jaffry said that Anglo-Indian category allows the nomination of an MLA or MLC candidate.
Jaffry said that they would vote for anyone who signs the charter. “I am not talking as a member of BJP but as a member of the Shia community. If TRS agrees to our demands, we will vote for them,” he said. Most of the Shias in these two constituencies have historically voted for AIMIM, Jaffry claimed. He indicated that if the party’s contestants do not sign the charter, they could lose quite a few votes. “But if they accept our demands, we will continue voting for them,” he said. The charter also asks for a separate budget of Rs 100 crore for the upkeep of Ashoorkhanas and other Shia religious institutions.
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Five demands
1 % reservation to Shias out of 4% for Muslims on the whole
Nomination of an eminent Shia as MLA or MLC
Establishment of a Shia Waqf Board
Nominations of members into four institutions under Minority Welfare Department
Rs 100 crore budget for upkeep of Ashoorkhanas and other Shia religious institutions