Hyderabad: Advisor to state govt, Mohammed Ali Shabbir, along with minority, SC, ST and BC welfare ministers Adluri Laxman and Ponnam Prabhakar, announced on Sunday that the Congress govt has fulfilled its election promise of allotting land for a Muslim graveyard in Jubilee Hills.The Jubilee Hills assembly constituency is set to go for a by-election, with the Election Commission of India expected to issue a notification later this week. The Congress govt has been inaugurating and laying foundations for various projects in bypoll-bound constituency.Shabbir Ali and the ministers spoke at a joint media conference during the handover of documents for one acre and five guntas of land near the Masjid (Ghairabad) in Shaikpet, intended to serve residents of Rahmat Nagar, Erragadda, Borabanda, and neighbouring areas. The constituency has nearly 1.40 lakh Muslim voters.He said the allotted land would be developed into a functional graveyard with essential amenities, including a boundary wall, watchman’s quarters, and facilities for bathing and preparing the mortal remains (ghusl and kafan). A local community joint action committee will oversee the site’s development and upkeep. He added that an adjacent plot, currently facing access-related issues, would also be handed over once technical and legal challenges are resolved.‘Not political gesture’He emphasised that the allotment was not merely a political gesture but a step towards dignity and justice for under-served communities. “This is not charity. This is a right. It was promised in our manifesto and we are now fulfilling it,” Shabbir Ali said. Responding to criticism from opposition parties, Shabbir Ali asserted that the Congress govt was delivering inclusive development. “Whether it’s free bus travel for women, ration cards, fine rice, Indiramma houses, 200 units of free electricity, or gas cylinders at 500 — these benefits are reaching all communities alike,” he said.He reiterated that the Congress govt was not favouring any one group. “We are addressing poverty, not religion. Chief minister Revanth Reddy says he has four eyes — one each for SCs and STs, then BCs, minorities and poorer sections from other communities. That reflects the spirit in which we are governing,” he said.
