Now, Babu woos minorities

Amaravati: After quitting the NDA, TDP president and Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has made a strategic move to enlist the support of minorities by bringing up reservations  for them in education and employment.

As part of this, Naidu held a meeting with Muslim clerics, Muslim minority leaders and others at his residence in Undavalli here on Monday and touched upon the sensitive issues - reservations and Triple Talaq Bill and reiterated his stand that he was for reservations and against harassment under Triple Talaq Bill. 

Chandrababu Naidu stated: “I directed officials to appoint efficient advocates to fight the case in the Supreme Court for retaining reservations for Muslims.” His statement on reservation and Triple Talaq, in the wake of BJP’s attack on him, gained political importance.

“When BJP government brought Triple Talaq Bill, I first opposed it. I said arresting after saying talaq trice would be a harassment against Muslim men. If the Bill says talaq would not be valid, I might support. But, arresting and registering criminal cases against Muslim men was not proper. Arrests are discrimination and harassment. I was the first person to firmly oppose this in the country, when the Bill was brought,” Chandrababu Naidu explained to the Muslim minority leaders.

“TDP always fought for communal harmony. We entered alliance with BJP with a hope of getting liberal Central assistance for our state's development, but they were reluctant to our rightful demands,” explained Chandrababu Naidu. He explained that he made Urdu as second language in the thirteen districts and implemented it in true spirit. 

He said that he sent the Muslim pilgrims to Mecca and arranged direct flight from Hyderabad. Naidu requested leaders to tour all the Muslim minority areas and asked them to ensure that Muslim minorities would support the TDP.