AYODHYA: While politicians are making a beeline to offer prayers to Ram Lalla in the run-up to the high-stakes assembly polls in UP, All-India Majlis Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi too has scheduled a visit to Ayodhya, but his cavalcade will steer clear off the holy city and proceed to the district’s lone Muslim-dominated constituency of Rudauli, 40km off Ramjanmabhoomi.
The Hyderabad politician will kick off his three-day trip to Uttar Pradesh on September 7 with a visit to the mausoleum of 18th century Sufi saint, Sheikh Aalam Makhdoom Zada, in Rudauli, where he will hold a public meeting in the vicinity of the shrine.
Talking to TOI, state president of AIMIM, Shaukat Ali, said, “After his ziyarat and public meeting in Rudauli, Owaisi will hold rallies in neighbouring Sultanpur and Barabanki districts on September 8 and 9. Faizabad is likely to be on his itinerary too.”
Owaisi’s proposed visit to the lone Muslim-dominated constituency of Ayodhya has again sparked off speculation about his political intent. Secretary of Indo-Islamic Cultural Foundation Athar Husain said, “Rudauli is a constituency from where Muslim candidates can get a cakewalk, but for two years in a row, BJP’s Ramchandra Yadav scraped through due to a split in Muslim votes. On both occasions, BSP fielded Muslim candidates against SP’s Rushdi Miyan. Now, Owaisi will try to do the same in the 2022 elections. He’s a Hyderabadi politician, who will never understand the DNA of Awadh, where Hindus and Muslims fought shoulder to shoulder against the British and share a strong bond of love and harmony.”
Talking to TOI, a Rudauli villager, Mohd Khursheed, said, “Owaisi always visits Muslim-dominated areas during elections. He never visits us when we are in distress and Muslim issues need to addressed in UP.
However, a local cleric, Mukhtar Ahmad, said, “Owaisi is the lone Muslim voice in India, who raises our issues in Parliament. First, we should listen to him, understand him and then form an opinion.”
