‘Friends at home, Foes outside’. This seems to be the guiding principle of the Congress, which is in power in Telangana, and the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM), a formidable political force in the Muslim-dominated constituencies in Hyderabad.
By deciding not to contest the upcoming assembly by-election to the Jubilee Hills seat in the city, the AIMIM has given tacit support to the Congress, which is locked in a triangle contest with the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) and BJP.
However, the two parties are engaged in a war of words in the Bihar elections. The Congress has accused the AIMIM, led by Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, of acting as a “B Team of BJP” in the poll-bound Bihar.
Senior Congress leader and Advisor to the Telangana Government Mohammed Ali Shabbir alleged that the AIMIM was deliberately dividing Muslim votes in Bihar to weaken secular parties and indirectly benefit the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Speaking at a public meeting in Chauki Panchayat of Kadwa constituency while campaigning for Congress candidate Dr Shakeel Ahmed Khan, Shabbir Ali said that MIM’s political entry into minority-dominated constituencies was aimed at damaging Muslim representation in the Assembly. He appealed to voters not to be swayed by emotional or religious appeals and to recognise that each vote cast for MIM effectively benefits the BJP.
“The kite symbol (of AIMIM) does not fly toward secularism - it lands straight in the BJP’s box,” Shabbir Ali told the gathering, warning that a split in the Muslim vote would cost the community its political voice.
“AIMIM is acting as a spoiler. Instead of strengthening secular forces, it is cutting into Muslim votes and helping the BJP. The party has become a real ‘vote katwa’,” the former minister said.
He asserted that Congress had always stood for the welfare and political empowerment of minorities through inclusive representation and policies. By dividing Muslim votes, he said, AIMIM was obstructing the community’s path to meaningful representation.
“Every vote split in these constituencies strengthens communal forces. AIMIM’s entry in such areas is clearly designed to damage Congress candidates and reduce Muslim political influence,” he added.
AIMIM leader and former Member of Legislative Council Syed Amin Jafri said, “Congress leaders suffer from global and local effects. Here in Jubilee Hills locally, we are working together, and there in Bihar, they are accusing us of working against them. We have offered support to the INDIA alliance wherever possible. We are contesting in 20 seats, mostly in the Seemanchal region; we are not sabotaging anyone’s chances.”
Referring to past elections, Shabbir Ali said that in the last Bihar Assembly polls, AIMIM had won only four seats but helped the BJP gain an advantage in more than two dozen constituencies by dividing the Muslim vote. “People have now understood their tactics. This time, MIM candidates will not even be able to save their deposits,” he said.
Calling on voters in Kishanganj and other Muslim-majority regions to unite behind Congress nominees, Shabbir Ali said the community must not allow its strength to be diluted. “We should send a strong message that Muslims will not be misled by divisive politics. Md Qamar Ul Huda represents a secular and inclusive vision, and the community must ensure his victory,” he said.
He urged local Congress workers to intensify door-to-door campaigning and counter misinformation spread by rival parties. “Our fight is not only against the BJP but also against those who indirectly strengthen it by fragmenting secular votes,” he said.
Highlighting his party’s concerns over AIMIM’s selective strategy, Shabbir Ali questioned why the party contests aggressively in states like Bihar while avoiding constituencies in Telangana where it could challenge the BJP directly. “For 54 years, the same party that could not cross the Musi River in Hyderabad suddenly wants to fight 100 seats in Bihar. Why not contest against BJP’s Raja Singh in Hyderabad’s Ghosha Mahal constituency? Why choose only Muslim pockets elsewhere?” he asked.
“Wherever MIM contests, BJP gains. That is the pattern across states. People must see through this design,” he remarked.
Meanwhile, the BJP has accused the Congress of having struck a ‘secret deal’ with AIMIM in return for the latter’s support in the Jubilee Hills by-election. As per the deal, the Congress government will donate 11 acres of temple land in the city to the AIMIM if it wins the upcoming by-poll, the senior BJP leader and Union Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar alleged.
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