Jittery Congress uses police to target minorities as Jubilee Hills bypoll draws nearer

The BRS has accused the Congress and AIMIM of orchestrating police intimidation and communal provocation ahead of the Jubilee Hills by-election. BRS leaders claim police raided Abdul Wahid’s residence past midnight and harassed his family. They also allege Congress activists attacked minority leaders and forced Sharif Qureshi to switch allegiance under threat.

Hyderabad: In clear signs of the desperation of the Congress to win the Jubilee Hills bypoll, where minority leaders have started speaking out against failures of the Congress government and against Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy‘s ‘divisive’ comments, police personnel in mufti and in uniform barged into the Tolichowki residence of BRS leader and advocate Abdul Wahid past midnight, allegedly holding out threats to his family members.

BRS leaders alleged that the police were acting at the behest of the Congress and AIMIM parties. Former Bodhan legislator Shakeel Aamir Mohammed alleged that throughout Wednesday, the police were harassing Wahid’s family members, pressurising them to reveal the whereabouts of Wahid.

---

“The police are working on instructions from the Congress party with a motive to instill fear among BRS leaders,” Shakeel Aamir alleged.

Meanwhile, Wahid’s family members released footage recorded by closed circuit television cameras in their home, which showed plainclothes policemen, believed to be from the Commissioner’s Task Force, entering the house and checking the rooms. The visuals went viral on social media on Thursday.

BRS minority leaders approached the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Sudarshan Reddy at BRK Bhavan later in the day and expressed concern over violent incidents in the Shaikhpet division, where they said, apart from the police, Congress activists too allegedly entered the residences of BRS leaders Abdul Wahid, Shakeel Ahmed and Akhil, attacking them and terrorising women in their households. They accused the police of acting in support of the ruling party, instead of protecting the victims.

The move was in retaliation for Wahid finding fault with Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy’s remarks on Muslims, they said, adding that despite those present there raising strong objections stating that the family comprising women, children and elderly persons, the police entered Wahid’s residence when he was not present and conducted an illegal search in an attempt to intimidate him and his family.

The BRS delegation that met the CEO also lodged a formal complaint with CEO Sudarshan Reddy, accusing Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy of making derogatory remarks against the Muslim community. They lodged a separate complaint on the Congress attacks allegedly targeting the BRS minority leaders in Jubilee Hills constituency.

The delegation, led by Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Council S Madhusudhanachari and comprising former MLAs T Jeevan Reddy, Mohammed Shakeel and senior leaders Palle Ravikumar, Kishore Goud, Salman Khan and other BRS minority representatives, urged the Election Commission to take immediate and stringent action.

They stated that Revanth Reddy’s comments claiming that, “If there is no Congress, there are no Muslims,” were highly provocative and divisive for the community.

“Such inflammatory statements and attacks are creating fear and insecurity among minorities ahead of the Jubilee Hills byelection,” they said, urging the ECI to ensure adherence to the Model Code of Conduct and uphold communal harmony during the bypoll.

The BRS leaders also demanded strict action against those responsible for the situation and to deploy additional surveillance teams in sensitive areas to prevent further escalation of communal tensions.

BRS leader and Hyderabad Youth Courage (HYC) president Salman Khan said the Congress was using the police to harass BRS leaders. The Congress had adopted a ‘threatening approach’ towards BRS senior leader from Erragadda, Sharif Qureshi, and forced him to join the Congress party.

“The local AIMIM and Congress party workers brought a bulldozer to Qureshi’s house and threatened to demolish the house. To save his house and shelter for family, Qureshi joined the Congress party,” Salman Khan said.