Govt considers Muslims as untouchables: Owaisi

Lok Sabha MP Asaduddin Owaisi on Monday expressed dissatisfaction with the government's treatment of the Muslim community, highlighting the alleged lack of focus on Muslims in Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's Budget speech.

During a discussion in the Lok Sabha on the Union Budget, Owaisi criticised the government's approach to inclusion and equity and accused it of treating Muslims as "untouchables".

"During the budget speech, the finance minister mentioned four communities, but I want to ask, are there no poor, young people, farmers, or women among the 17 crore Muslims in this country?" Owaisi said.

"Muslims are the poorest in this beloved nation with Muslim women facing the highest rate of deprivation," the president of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen said.

Sharing data to back his claims, Owaisi said only 29 per cent of Muslims aged between 15 and 24 years have access to education, compared to 44 per cent of Scheduled Castes, 51 per cent of Hindu OBCs, and 59 per cent of Hindu upper castes.

"In higher education, Muslim enrolment is just 5 per cent," he noted, citing Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data from 2018-19 to 2022-23.