Hyderabad: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader Shaik Abdullah Sohail accused Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy of trying to placate the Muslim community with a token cabinet post after excluding them for nearly two years.
Cabinet post under pressure, not principle
Sohail called the induction of Md Azharuddin into the cabinet a political “eyewash.” He claimed it stemmed from pressure by the BRS and fear of defeat in the Jubilee Hills by-election. “Revanth Reddy wants Muslims to believe that one cabinet post can erase two years of denial, deception, and discrimination,” he said.
The Chief Minister, Sohail added, had maintained a cabinet without a single Muslim minister for 23 months. Now, he was seeking praise for correcting what was his own decision.
Induction timing draws fire
According to Sohail, Azharuddin’s appointment on October 31, while the Model Code of Conduct was in force, exposed the Congress party’s desperation. “This has never happened before in Telangana. BRS pressure and public anger forced the Chief Minister to act,” he said.
Furthermore, he criticised the move for being framed as a gesture to Muslims rather than a necessary correction. “Representation is a right, not a favour. This arrogance exposes the Congress mindset,” Sohail said.
Past justifications contradicted
He pointed out that Revanth Reddy had earlier defended the absence of a Muslim minister by citing the lack of a Muslim MLA or MLC. “Amer Ali Khan was an MLC for 13 months but never received a cabinet post. Now, even without a Muslim legislator, Azharuddin has been inducted. What changed? Not the Constitution only the fear of losing Jubilee Hills,” Sohail said.
Unfulfilled promises to Muslims
Calling the move “too little, too late,” Sohail said the Congress had failed to deliver any of its promises in the Minorities Declaration. He questioned the status of key pledges, including ₹1,000 crore in subsidised loans, the Minorities Youth Commission, and the Abdul Kalam Taufa-e-Taleem scholarship scheme. “Not a single rupee has reached a single beneficiary,” he said.
He further alleged that the Revanth Reddy government preferred optics over action. “It talks about inclusion while practising exclusion. Budgets show allocations, but government files reveal inaction,” Sohail said.
Call for voter response
Sohail urged the people of Jubilee Hills to send a strong message in the by-election. “If this government can act only under pressure, it deserves to stay under pressure,” he said. “Muslims deserve respect, not symbolism. Telangana needs accountability, not arrogance.”