Aurangabad MLA says it should be scrapped, wants pvt airlines also to fly pilgrims
So, Imtiaz Jaleel has replied, and how! He has thrown a shocker at the Shiv Sena.
The All India Majlis E Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) MLA says he, too, is in favour of the Haj subsidy being scrapped. In fact, he went a step further and called the dole a "gimmick."
His remark came a day after the Sena criticised the AIMIM on many fronts in its party mouthpiece Saamna. Saamna editor and Sena leader Sanjay Raut's offensive came after Jaleel opposed the construction of memorials in the names of Chhatrapati Shivaji, Bal Thackeray and Gopinath Munde.
"The Haj subsidy must be scrapped and the money must be used for building schools for Muslim girls. They have a low literacy rate... the development of the country is more important," Jaleel, a former journalist and now an MLA from Aurangabad Central, told dna. "Maharashtra needs schools and colleges," Jaleel said.
And how can it be ended? Jaleel has the answer: right now, only Air India is allowed to fly these pilgrims. If private airlines, too, are brought in, and competitive bidding allowed, Haj fares would come down, he suggested.
Jaleel, who is one of the two MLAs from the Asaduddin Owaisi-led party in Maharashtra, alleged that when the Sena did not have constructive arguments, they "diverted it (the debate) to bakwas (nonsensical) issues."
Instead of constructing memorials for Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and Bal Thackeray and Gopinath Munde, the funds can be used to build hospitals in their names.
"I said this on humanitarian grounds – in the interests of Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs... they can do it even if they want a hospital catering only to Hindus. In the government cancer hospital at Aurangabad, even an appointment for an MRI scan takes two months," he said, alleging that "the Shiv Sena is giving a communal angle to the entire thing".
"I have high regards for Gopinath Munde. Balasaheb Thackeray has a huge following in Maharashtra. If tributes are to be paid to them in the real sense, then build hospitals in their names," he said. The state needs politics centered around developmental issues and not emotive ones, he said.
Raut had also raised the yoga issue on Monday. "This is an unwanted controversy," said Jaleel.
"No one is opposing yoga. (The community is opposed to) the forceful implementation of yoga. There will be no opposition from Muslims for one or two asanas. It is not that Muslims do not do yoga. The basic tenet of Islam is that you do not bow your head before anyone except Allah. Hence, surya namaskar can be skipped... the government can't force anything on anyone," said Jaleel.
He pointed to how the government had introduced national anthem before movie shows. "Don't mix entertainment with nationalism. They are two different things," said Jaleel, whose party is the principal opposition in the Aurangabad civic body.
"That is a legal issue. If anything is illegal, there is scope for action. One can't compare this with that," said Jaleel, when asked about the Shiv Sena daring his party to call for the demolition of illegal masjids and dargahs which stand on government land.
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