Congress kept minorities out of mainstream development: BJP

BJP national vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi questioned Congress` contribution towards welfare of Muslims and alleged that the minority community was kept away from mainstream development during Congress rule.

New Delhi: BJP national vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Sunday questioned Congress` contribution towards welfare of Muslims and alleged that the minority community was kept away from mainstream development during Congress rule.

Addressing a Muslim convention organised by the party here, Naqvi said half of the country`s Muslim population today live below poverty line and are forced to live with an earning of less than Rs 500 per month. "They have been pushed to the lowest standards in terms of education, security and prosperity... Muslims have been thrown far away from the developmental mainstream under the UPA rule and the previous 45 years of Congress regime," he said accusing the Congress of playing vote bank politics. "Their (Muslims) votes have been extorted by creating a fear psychosis and spectre about BJP or communalism," he said. He, however, claimed that BJP`s focus was on real issues faced by the Muslims. "The party would soon come out with a vision document on minority empowerment which would elaborate the party`s stand on education, security and prosperity of minorities as also their participation in governance. We would also outline the BJP`s stance on Waqf, Haj etc," Naqvi said. In an effort to woo minority Muslim voters in the upcoming Delhi Assembly polls, BJP chief Vijay Goel said the party would ensure introduction of Urdu as an optional subject in schools run by the Delhi government and make sure that madrasas and Wakf boards are run by non-political entities, which the present government has ignored. "Congress has created a sense of false insecurity among minority voters by saying that if Muslims did not support a `secular` party like it then there would be no one to protect their interest," he said addressing the convention on `Muslim for Development`, organised by Delhi BJP`s Minority Morcha. PTI