Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], November 4 (ANI): All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Wednesday said his party had opposed the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls from the very beginning, and rejected suggestions of joining the Opposition's INDIA bloc.
Owaisi told ANI, "We made an app in January-February-March. We have been opposing SIR right from the beginning. Even in Parliament, Imtiaz Jaleel - when he was an MP - and I voted against the Bill. We had questioned why is legal immunity being given to the Election Commissioner...We had said that SIR is backdoor NRC...We had been opposing it but people were ignoring. We had been saying that this is a threat, others woke up only later."
On whether AIMIM would join the INDIA bloc, the Hyderabad MP said the alliance was a separate political formation, and several parties were not part of it.
"That (INDIA bloc) is a different political formation, several parties are not a part of it. Why was Tamil Nadu CM not at the protest? Why was DMK not there? But you are asking only me...These people are allergic to forging an alliance with me. But you want me to come out on the streets," Owaisi said.
On Yog Guru Ramdev's reported statement that Owaisi's entry could split votes in favour of Yogi Adityanath in UP, Owaisi, taking a jibe, referred to Ramdev's original name and his Yadav identity, and claimed that former UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav had given him land.
"Do you know his original name? He too is a Yadav. Akhilesh Yadav gave him land. He speaks on breathing through nose but sometimes he speaks from his heart," he said.
On the visit of RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav and SP leader Dharmendra Yadav to Hyderabad, Owaisi clarified that they were invited by Yadav MPs of the Congress for a traditional festival of the Yadav community in the city.
"Yadav MPs of Congress have invited them here for a traditional festival of the Yadav community. The bulls are sent to the festival by a relative of mine. It is a really famous festival in Hyderabad...," he said.
This comes amid growing political activity in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections, with the BJP and the Samajwadi Party (SP) preparing for a crucial electoral contest.
Uttar Pradesh, which has 403 Assembly seats, is expected to witness a major contest between the BJP and the SP in 2027, with the Congress also looking to expand its political footprint in the state. (ANI)
"These people are allergic to forging alliance with me": Owaisi on joining INDIA bloc
