Harish Rao demands Rs 5,000 Cr for minorities

Stating that the growth of the State was not possible with ensuring social justice, Telangana Rashtra Samithi deputy floor leader T Harish Rao on Saturday demanded that the State Government introduce Sub-Plan for Minorities and Backward Classes.

Speaking in the Legislative Assembly on the SC, ST Sub-Plan Bill 2012, Harish Rao demanded that the government allocate Rs 5,000 crore for the development of minorities, especially the Muslims, in the State. The definition of welfare measures for Muslims have been confined to some gesture like hosting an Iftar party at Nizam College Grounds, flagging off the Haj pilgrims, performing marriages of a few poor girls or giving scholarships to a few thousand students, he said.

Harish Rao said that the funds being sanctioned and spent by the State Government for the welfare of minorities were too meager for a population of over 70 lakh Muslims across the State. He demanded that political leaders, across party lines, should demand serious and sincere measures for the development of Muslims on par with other communities. He demanded that the government introduce minorities Sub-Plan on the lines of SC, ST Sub-Plan at the earliest.