Minorities upset with Cong over less tickets

Minority leaders in the Congress seem to be up in arms, with former minister R Roshan Baig and the Christian Community Coalition (Karnataka) venting out their ire against the party’s leadership for neglecting them.

Baig, while speaking to Urdu media, said Muslims had demanded the ticket for the Bidar Lok Sabha seat. “But the party gave the excuse that there was no winnable Muslim candidate. It appears that the Congress is out to end Muslim leadership,” he said.

Apparently, the party used to field Muslims from Gulbarga, Dharwad and Bengaluru districts. Of the 21 candidates fielded in Karnataka this time, only one Muslim - Rizwan Arshad - has been fielded from Bangalore Central.

Christians, too, are upset that not a single one of them has been fielded this time. “Christian Community Coalition (Karnataka) has requested all senior Christian leaders of Karnataka to resign from Congress party in protest against the step-motherly treatment meted out to them in various political as well as bureaucratic positions in the government,” the coalition said in a letter.

Former minister J Alexander has already resigned from the party’s primary membership. The Christians had demanded the ticket for Bangalore Central, where former top cop H T Sangliana was a contender.