PM did not think about migrant labourers while announcing lockdown: Owaisi

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Friday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not take into account the condition of migrant labourers while announcing the countrywide lockdown.

"The lockdown announced by our Prime Minister was unplanned. He did not think about the migrant labourers from Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Jharkhand who are working in urban cities," said Owaisi.

Citing an example of the 12-year-old girl who died of exertion as she exhausted after walking over 100 km from Telangana to Chattisgarh, he said, "Migrant labourers are suffering and some are even resorting to committing suicide as the lockdown have scared them and they are unable to reach their homes."

Owaisi also said that most of these migrant labourers do not have a bank account nor a ration card, hence, "the government should give them money based on their Aadhar card number."

"The surplus rice in godowns should be distributed to the needy people instead of using it to make stisers as proposed by the Food Corporation of India," the AIMIM chief said while adding that Rs 30,000 crore Central Vista project which was approved by the Centre should be stopped and the money should be diverted to help the needy people.

Questioning the Centre's plan after the lockdown is over, he asked, "What will happen to the migrants and will they get back their jobs?"

He also took a dig on the recent comment made by Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on the Tablighi Jamaat attendees. "You said that coronavirus does not target a particular community but didn't a member of your Cabinet say Talib Jamaat instead of Tableeghi Jamaat."

He further said, "A TV anchor can sit and make fun of Islam and can even swear on TV just because he has an unbridled right as he is loved by the government. I would like to tell the TV anchor, who names me and talks about me, to read about the genocide in Rwandan and why it took place."

Speaking on the recent lynching of three saints in Maharashtra, the AIMIM chief, while condemning the incident, said, "I was shocked to see a BJP member, on an international platform, saying that Muslims were behind the lynching incident. This surprised me and later it was revealed to everyone that the attackers were not Muslims."

( With inputs from ANI )