Shabbir Ali condemns BRS Govt for blocking visit to Haj House, Accuses CM KCR of politicizing pilgrimage
Hyderabad, June 22: Congress senior leader and TPCC PAC Convener Mohammed Ali Shabbir strongly condemned the BRS Government for obstructing his visit to the Haj House on Thursday to give a ceremonial send-off to Haj pilgrims.
Despite receiving an official invitation from the Haj Committee, Shabbir Ali was unexpectedly placed under house arrest by the Telangana Police, denying him the opportunity to visit the Haj House and interact with the pilgrims. He strongly condemned the lack of coordination among the government departments.
Shabbir Ali strongly criticized Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao, accusing him of politicizing the Haj camp. He emphasized that it has been a longstanding tradition for leaders of all political parties to unite and participate in bidding farewell to the various batches of pilgrims, considering it a sacred act devoid of any political agenda. “CM KCR has not visited the Haj House since 2017 and now he is stopping all others from connecting with the pilgrims and giving them a ceremonial send-off on their sacred journey,” he alleged.
The Congress leader pointed out that while the Chief Minister managed to find time to visit neighbouring states for BRS meetings, he reportedly refused to visit the Haj camp. “Since the formation of Telangana, KCR has only visited the Haj House thrice in the past nine years, specifically in 2015, 2016, and 2017, to bid farewell to the pilgrims. Since he made fake promises before the Haj pilgrims during his visits, he has been avoiding the Haj camp since 2018,” he alleged.
He reminded that as a Minister in the previous Congress Government in 1993, Razzak Manzil was acquired, and the new building, which now houses the Haj House, was constructed later. He mentioned that two additional properties adjacent to the Haj House were acquired by spending several crores of rupees. Moreover, he highlighted that the commercial complex adjacent to the Haj House, which was constructed by the previous Congress Government, remains incomplete under the BRS Government, leading to its dilapidated condition due to non-usage.
The Congress leader alleged that CM KCR’s growing proximity with the BJP and RSS had caused him to completely neglect the welfare of minority communities.
Shabbir Ali stated that KCR’s decision to place him and other Congress leaders under house arrest deprived them of meeting the Haj pilgrims, who are regarded as guests of Allah. He firmly declared that he would never forgive KCR for this act.
Meanwhile, Shabbir Ali advised the pilgrims to remain focused on their prayers during their stay in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. He encouraged them to minimize their use of mobile phones and remain vigilant at all times, drawing from his own experiences of Haj and Umrah. He urged the pilgrims to express gratitude to the Almighty for being chosen among thousands of others for this sacred journey and emphasized the significance of prayers (Dua) during the Haj pilgrimage, citing references from the teachings of Islam.
Shabbir Ali highlighted the importance of every second during this holy pilgrimage, urging the pilgrims to continuously recite the Talbiyah, a special prayer, until they reach the Holy Mecca. He also encouraged them to make a special wish when they witness the Holy Kaaba for the first time and to pray for the well-being of all mankind, particularly for our nation and state.
