Print this article

AP Muslims hail SC order upholding reservations

March 27, 2010 02:36 IST

The Muslim minority in Andhra Pradesh has welcomed Supreme Court's interim order in favour of 4% reservation with large scale celebrations, bursting crackers and distributing sweets.

The bitterness and disappointment generated by the Andhra Pradesh High Court's order of February 8 quashing the Muslim Reservations act as unconstitutional, gave way to delight and satisfaction as the news of the interim order of three judge bench of the Supreme Court spread.

While Muslims in Hyderabad, the biggest center of minority population in the state came out in large numbers greeting each other and hailing the Supreme Court, Muslims in other parts of the state specially in major towns like Kadapa, Kurnool, Anantapur, Guntur,Vijaywada, Nizamabad and Warangal also celebrated the judgement. It was also a celebration time in the state Congress headquarters Gandhi Bhavan where a large number of party workers from the Muslim community gathered to greet and thank the state party president D Srinivas.

In Daurssalam, the headquarters of Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, a large number of workers celebrated the occasion by garlanding their leader and member of Parliament Asaduddin Owaisi and bursting the crackers.

Several Congress leaders including the state ministers led by former minister Mohammed Ali Shabbir met the Chief Minister K Rosaiah in the state assembly to congratulate him over the first success in the legal fight in the apex court. Rosaiah also offered sweets to Shabbir Ali for his role in making reservations for the Muslims a reality.

Minister for minority affairs Syed Ahmadullah said that the state government will not rest till it gets a favorable final judgment from the Supreme Court. "When the constitutional bench of Supreme Court starts hearing of the case from August 12 we will put forth our arguments forcefully and effectively", he said.

Asaduddin Owaisi MP said that while he was happy with the interim order of the Supreme Court, the main battle lies ahead as the Supreme Court has to give a final judgment. He demanded the central government to amend the constitution to provide reservations to Muslims in jobs and education throughout the country. "This success is the result of the hard work of all the Muslim leaders and organizations including those belonging to the Congress and the TDP", he said

Zahed Ali Kham, politburo member of TDP expressed his happiness over the court verdict but reminded the government that it was an interim order and it should work very hard to make the reservations permanent.

Mohammed Siddique in Hyderabad