Asaduddin Owaisi accused the Congress and Samajwadi Party of treating Muslims as vote banks rather than citizens with equal rights
He pitched a third political alternative in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections
Owaisi said the AIMIM-Azad Samaj Party alliance aims to stop the BJP from returning to power in the state
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has accused the Congress and the Samajwadi Party of treating Muslims as vote banks instead of citizens with equal rights. He pitched a third political alternative before the 2027 Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. In an interview with NDTV, Owaisi linked his party's alliance with Chandrashekhar Azad's Azad Samaj Party to a broader fight against the BJP in the state.
He said the alliance was not limited to social arithmetic and was aimed at stopping the BJP from returning to power in Uttar Pradesh. “Dalit-Muslim unity is not the sole objective. The main purpose is to ensure that the BJP does not return to power. We want to put up a strong fight against the BJP, which has unleashed lawlessness in the state,” he told NDTV.
Owaisi also framed the tie-up as a challenge to an entrenched political order led by established parties. His remarks come as parties begin positioning themselves for the 2027 Assembly contest in Uttar Pradesh.
Muslim Representation Claims
Owaisi alleged that Muslims were repeatedly used by parties that described themselves as secular but were denied independent political representation. “They see Muslims just as voters, not as citizens with rights,” he said.
He accused such parties of failing to address the community’s concerns after elections. Owaisi cited alleged bulldozer action against Muslims and their lack of adequate access to employment and education as examples of the problems the community faced.
He also accused established parties of blocking the rise of independent Muslim leadership. “Muslims have not been allowed to develop political leadership, whereas every other caste group has its own political representation,” he told NDTV.
Alliance Defense
Owaisi rejected the charge that his alliance with Azad could split Opposition votes and help the BJP.
He questioned the Congress and SP over their own election strategies in other states. He pointed to the SP contesting elections in Jammu and Kashmir and the Congress fighting the Aam Aadmi Party in Punjab to argue that parties were selective in criticising alliances and electoral competition.
“Why did the SP contest in Kashmir? Who was responsible for our candidate Imtiaz Jaleel's defeat in Maharashtra? Look at the Congress. It is fighting the AAP in Punjab. It is calling AAP the B team of the BJP. There is a lot of contradiction and hypocrisy going around,” he said.
Owaisi also accused established parties of following a “feudalistic political mindset” by limiting leadership opportunities to a small set of people. He said his alliance with Azad was meant to challenge that arrangement and give voters another option.
Akhilesh Exchange
Owaisi then turned his attack on SP chief Akhilesh Yadav. He rejected claims that the Samajwadi Party had approached AIMIM for an alliance and called that suggestion the “biggest lie of 2026”. Instead saying that he had offered an alliance to the SP but that proposal was rejected.
Owaisi also recalled the Muzaffarnagar riots and alleged that Muslims displaced by the violence did not get adequate support under the SP government. Pointing to his visits to relief camps he referred to them as a turning point in how he understood the position of the community in Uttar Pradesh.
He also criticised Akhilesh’s visit to Ayodhya and alleged that the SP chief was trying to establish his Hindutva credentials. “If you are also relying on a mandir to win, what is the difference between you and the BJP? The SP is just trying to convince people of its own Hindutva credentials. It will not help Akhilesh,” Owaisi said.
