Akbaruddin Owaisi (born 14 June 1970) is an Indian politician and leader of

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen The All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen ( en, All India Council for Unity of Muslims) ( AIMIM) is an Indian political party based primarily in the city of Hyderabad. It is also a significant political party in the Indian States of Telangana ...

(AIMIM) party in

Telangana Telangana (; , ) is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian subcontinent, Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India b ...

. Since 2014, he has been MLA of the

Chandrayangutta Chandrayan Gutta (AZIZ COLONY) is a Locality in Old City, Hyderabad, Telangana, India.Chandrayangutta PS

constituency in the

Telangana Legislative Assembly The Telangana Legislative Assembly or Telangana Śāsana Sabha is the lower house of the Telangana Legislature. The Legislative Assembly of Telangana currently consists of 119 elected members and 1 nominated member from the Anglo-Indian communi ...

. Owaisi was appointed as the Chairman of Telangana Public Accounts Committee in 2019. Owaisi has presided over the Chandrayangutta assembly constituency from 1999, winning for the fifth term in 2018. He assumed the position of floor leader in 2004. In 2011, while rallying, fifteen armed assailants attacked Owaisi with guns, swords and daggers. His assailants shot him in the abdomen, and he suffers from ongoing medical issues because the bullet is still lodged near his kidney which the doctors warned will affect his legs if removed. Owaisi’s speeches have drawn comparisons with other

populist Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...

leaders and his speeches have incited violence on multiple occasions.

Early life and background

Owaisi was born in Hyderabad on 14 June 1970. He was born to a Muslim family to Sultan Salahuddin Owaisi and his wife. Akbaruddin Owaisi and his father reconciled in 1998.

Personal life

Owaisi is married to Sabina Farzana. He has one daughter and one son.

Political career

Owaisi has been elected as the

Member of the Legislative Assembly A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. S ...

for

Chandrayangutta Chandrayan Gutta (AZIZ COLONY) is a Locality in Old City, Hyderabad, Telangana, India.Chandrayangutta PS

constituency on five consecutive occasions, in 1999, 2004, 2009, 2014 and 2018. He served as a deputy to his elder brother Asaduddin Owaisi, who was leading the AIMIM in the House. In 2004, Akbaruddin became the floor leader of AIMIM in the Assembly upon Asaduddin's election to Lok Sabha from Hyderabad. He was re-elected in 2009 and lead the seven-member AIMIM in the House. Owaisi won his fourth consecutive victory in Assembly polls from

Chandrayangutta Chandrayan Gutta (AZIZ COLONY) is a Locality in Old City, Hyderabad, Telangana, India.Chandrayangutta PS

assembly in 2014. Akbaruddin Owaisi won his Fifth Consecutive victory in Assembly polls from Chandrayangutta Assembly in 2018. In 2019, he was appointed as the Chairman of Telangana Public Accounts Committee.

Other ventures

Established Salar-e-Millat Educational Trust

Owaisi established Salar-e-Millat Educational Trust which runs a chain of Owaisi School of Excellence in Hyderabad. He provides free education to children in these schools.

Habeeb E-Millat Trust

Inside AIMIM Akbaruddin is know as Habeeb E-Millat. According to

Companies House Companies House is the executive agency of the company registrars of the United Kingdom, falling under the remit of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. All forms of companies (as permitted by the Companies Act) are i ...

the trust is registered in the United Kingdom and Syed Mustafa Husseini is its director.

Controversies

Academics suggest that Owaisi intentionally uses threatening language, and India's Hindu-led government to position himself and his party as a pan-Indian Islamist movement. Subsequently, political commentators have drawn parallels between Owaisi's political strategy and Italy's nationalist,

, right-wing

Lega Nord Lega Nord (; acronym: LN), whose complete name is (), is a right-wing, federalist, populist and conservative political party in Italy. In the run-up of the 2018 general election, the party was rebranded as (), without changing its official n ...

party. Some describe Owaisi's brand of hate-speech as

Stochastic Stochastic (, ) refers to the property of being well described by a random probability distribution. Although stochasticity and randomness are distinct in that the former refers to a modeling approach and the latter refers to phenomena themselv ...

, meaning the pan-Indian violence resulting from his speeches is sporadic and unpredictable. Thusly, Owaisi's words have a destabilising effect on India's nascent, sometimes fragile democracy.

Threats to kill

In August 2007, along with other elected and serving members of his party, Owaisi made death threats against

Taslima Nasrin Taslima Nasrin (born 25 August 1962) is a Bangladeshi-Swedish writer, physician, feminist, secular humanist, and activist. She is known for her writing on women's oppression and criticism of religion. Some of her books are banned in Bangladesh ...

, pledging that the ''

fatwa A fatwā ( ; ar, فتوى; plural ''fatāwā'' ) is a legal ruling on a point of Islamic law (''sharia'') given by a qualified '' Faqih'' (Islamic jurist) in response to a question posed by a private individual, judge or government. A jurist i ...

'' against her and

Salman Rushdie Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie (; born 19 June 1947) is an Indian-born British-American novelist. His work often combines magic realism with historical fiction and primarily deals with connections, disruptions, and migrations between Eastern and Wes ...

would be upheld if they visited Hyderabad. Owaisi said, "we in Hyderabad want to behead this woman according to the fatwa."

Racist language

While speaking at a rally in

Kurnool Kurnool is a city in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India. It formerly served as the capital of Andhra State (1953–1956). The city is often referred to as "The Gateway of Rayalaseema".Kurnool is also known as The City of Gem Stones. It also se ...

in 2011, Owaisi used the derogatory terms

Kafir Kafir ( ar, كافر '; plural ', ' or '; feminine '; feminine plural ' or ') is an Arabic and Islamic term which, in the Islamic tradition, refers to a person who disbelieves in God as per Islam, or denies his authority, or rejects ...

s and Kufrastan to refer to MLAs in Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Assembly. In the same rally he used the

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Prime Minister of India The prime minister of India (IAST: ) is the head of government of the Republic of India. Executive authority is vested in the prime minister and their chosen Council of Ministers, despite the president of India being the nominal head of the ...

, P V Narasimha Rao. Owaisi said that if Rao had not died, he (Owaisi) would have killed Rao with his own hands.

Views on Hindu Gods

In April 2012, Owaisi made derogatory and demeaning comments against the Hindu god

Rama Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular '' avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Bein ...

and his mother

Kaushalya Kausalya () is the senior queen-consort of Kosala in the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. She is the mother of Rama, the titular hero of the epic, and the senior wife of Dasharatha, who ruled Kosala from its capital of Ayodhya. In some later accou ...

. Owaisi asked "Where all did Ram's mother go wandering and where did she give birth to him". In August 2012, Owaisi claimed while speaking in

Karimnagar Karimnagar is also known as Elagandula (Ancient name) is a city and District Headquarters in the Indian state of Telangana. Karimnagar is a major urban agglomeration and fifth largest City in the state. It is governed by Municipal corporation a ...

that there have been "50,000" riots in India over 65 years since the country became independent. He claimed in the speech that a "majority" of those killed in the riots were Muslims. On 12 December 2012, Owaisi made derogatory remarks with hand gestures about a Hindu goddess at a public rally in Nizamabad. He said making hand gestures – "She, who is sitting," and added, "What is this new name Bhagyalakshmi, never heard of her. Shout such slogans such that the Bhagya also shakes and Lakshmi also falls down."

Speech at Adilabad

On 22 December 2012, Owaisi addressed a rally of twenty to twenty-five thousand people in the Nirmal town of Adilabad district of Andhra Pradesh. In his two-hour-long speech, Owaisi made multiple comments against Hindus, Hindu deities,

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ( ; , , ) is an Indian right-wing, Hindu nationalist, paramilitary volunteer organisation. The RSS is the progenitor and leader of a large body of organisations called the Sangh Parivar (Hindi for "Sangh family" ...

Vishva Hindu Parishad The Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) () is an Indian right-wing Hindu organization based on Hindu nationalism. The VHP was founded in 1964 by M. S. Golwalkar and S. S. Apte in collaboration with Swami Chinmayananda. Its stated objective is "to ...

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...

Punjab Kesari Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

reported that Owaisi referred to the Hindus as "impotent" and the Indian police as the "impotent army". He said that not even one crore impotent men can together father one child. He said that these people (Hindus) cannot face the Muslims, and whenever the Muslims start dominating the Hindus, the impotent army (police) intervenes. and added that the Muslims could "teach the rest of the world a lesson". Akbaruddin said that 25 crore Muslims would need just 15 minutes without the police to show 100 crore Hindus who is more powerful and will finish off 100 crore Hindus in 15 minutes. Owaisi referred to Ajmal Amir Kasab, one of the Pakistani terrorists of the

2008 Mumbai attacks The 2008 Mumbai attacks (also referred to as 26/11, pronounced "twenty six eleven") were a series of Terrorism, terrorist attacks that took place in November 2008, when 10 members of Lashkar-e-Taiba, an Islamist terrorist organisation from P ...

, as a "child", and compared him with

Narendra Modi Narendra Damodardas Modi (; born 17 September 1950) is an Indian politician serving as the 14th and current Prime Minister of India since 2014. Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and is the Member of Parliament from ...

. He said that if the Muslims of India united like the Muslims of Andhra Pradesh, Narendra Modi would soon be hanged. Owaisi threatened that if his words were not heard, "O India, destruction and ruin will be your fate". He threatened that India will witness a bloodshed which has not been seen in the last 1000 years. He also dared Narendra Modi to come to Hyderabad, threatening by saying "we will show him then". Owaisi justified the Mumbai bombings of 1993 by saying they were a reaction to the demolition of Babri Masjid and atrocities on Muslims in India. He also questioned the punishment handed out to the accused of the bombings, naming

Tiger Memon Ibrahim Mushtaq Abdul Razzaq Memon (born 24 November 1960), better known by the nickname Tiger Memon, is a gangster and terrorist, reputed to be one of the masterminds behind the 1993 Mumbai bombings. He is wanted by Interpol and the Central Bur ...

as one of those punished even though Tiger Memon is still at large. Owaisi denigrated Hindu gods in his speech. Owaisi mocked Hindu

cremation Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a Cadaver, dead body through Combustion, burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India ...

by saying "when you (Hindus) die, you become air after burning and go astray." Owaisi talked in derogatory terms about heritage places of India including

Ayodhya Ayodhya (; ) is a city situated on the banks of holy river Saryu in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Ayodhya, also known as Sāketa, Saketa, is an ancient city of India, the birthplace of Rama and ...

Ajanta Caves The Ajanta Caves are approximately thirty rock-cut Buddhist cave monuments dating from the second century BCE to about 480 CE in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra state in India. The caves include paintings and rock-cut sculptures des ...

and

Ellora Caves Ellora is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in the Aurangabad district of Maharashtra, India. It is one of the largest rock-cut Hindu temple cave complexes in the world, with artwork dating from the period 600–1000 CE., Quote: "These 34 m ...

. He said that if Muslims go away from India, they will take the

Taj Mahal The Taj Mahal (; ) is an Islamic ivory-white marble mausoleum on the right bank of the river Yamuna in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned in 1631 by the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan () to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mu ...

Red Fort The Red Fort or Lal Qila () is a historic fort in Old Delhi, Delhi in India that served as the main residence of the Mughal Emperors. Emperor Shah Jahan commissioned construction of the Red Fort on 12 May 1638, when he decided to shift hi ...

and

Qutb Minar The Qutb Minar, also spelled Qutub Minar and Qutab Minar, is a minaret and "victory tower" that forms part of the Qutb complex, which lies at the site of Delhi’s oldest fortified city, Lal Kot, founded by the Tomar Rajputs. It is a UNESCO Worl ...

with them, adding "What will then remain here? Just a razed Ram temple in Ayodhya and naked statues of Ajanta." Owaisi compared the state of Muslims of India to the state of Muslims of the world. Owaisi said that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the Vishva Hindu Parishad, and the Bharatiya Janata Party were poisonous snakes, and to "crush their heads" a stick is enough.
After the speech, Owaisi left for London citing "medical treatment" as the reason.

NDTV New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. The company is considered to be a legacy brand that pioneered independent news broadcasting in India, and is credited for launching t ...

reported on 3 January that Owaisi was getting treated for intestinal injuries he sustained when he was attacked over a land dispute in 2011. Owaisi returned to Hyderabad on 7 January 2013.

Influence on the Islamic State

During interrogation a former

Islamic State An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...

suicide bomber claimed that Owaisi's speeches influenced him. An interrogation report from 2015 revealed that Owaisi's speeches inspired his Jihadi mindset, prompting him to join the terrorist organisation.

Legal proceedings

On 28 December 2012, a petition was filed in a local court in Nampally of Hyderabad against Akbaruddin Owaisi for hurting the sentiments of Hindus, and for making inflammatory, derogatory and offensive remarks. The Andhra Pradesh Human Rights Commission directed the Hyderabad Police Commissioner to submit an inquiry report on the alleged hate speech by 17 January 2013. On 3 January 2013, Abid Rasool Khan, General Secretary of Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee, told the news channel

CNN IBN CNN-News18 (originally CNN-IBN) is an Indian English-language news television channel founded by Raghav Bahl based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is currently co-owned by Network18 Group and Warner Bros. Discovery. CNN provides internationa ...

that the state government had "taken cognizance of speech" and they were "collecting evidence to build a strong FIR and a water-tight case where we can book the person causing hatred." On 5 January 2013, a case was filed against Owaisi in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

while a court in

Vadodara Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is the second largest city in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district and is situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River, from the state capital ...

served a notice on him for his alleged ''hate speech''. In May 2014, Andhra Pradesh government gave nod to prosecute Akbaruddin Owaisi in a 2004 case for an alleged hate speech.

Arrest and bail

Owaisi returned to Hyderabad on 7 January 2013 and was welcomed by his 7 MLA's and MIM leaders at the

Hyderabad airport Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) is an international airport that serves Hyderabad, the capital of the Indian state of Telangana. It is located in Shamshabad, about south of Hyderabad and it was opened on 23 March 2008 to replace ...

. He later drove to his house in the

Banjara Hills Banjara Hills is an urban commercial centre and one of the most affluent neighbourhoods in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. This is an upmarket locality close to Jubilee Hills. This area was a hilly forest and was least inhabited in the past. Only ...

area of the city. Owaisi failed to answer a police summons at Nirmal town on 8 January, citing ill-health, and asked for four days' time to appear for investigation. A team of doctors examined Owaisi at his home twice on 7 January. The police declared that he was fit for investigation, even though he complained of bad health. Owaisi also petitioned the High Court of Andhra Pradesh to quash the cases filed against him in lower courts. On 8 January, doctors examined him at the Gandhi Hospital and confirmed that their tests showed no medical grounds to prevent his arrest, following which he was arrested by Hyderabad police. At the Gandhi Hospital, Owaisi alleged that the doctors were trying to murder him by giving lethal injections. After spending 40 days in prison, Akbaruddin Owaisi was granted bail on 15 February 2013.

Reiteration of "fifteen minute" hate speech

In 2019, Owaisi reiterated his 2013 remark that "if the police is removed for only 15 minutes that would be enough to balance the Hindu-Muslim population ratio" whilst speaking at a public meeting in Karimnagar, Telangana. Following the outburst, the 14th Additional chief metropolitan magistrate court in Telangana directed the Saidabad police force register a case against Owaisi after receiving complaints about a hate speech. On 13 April 2022, Owaisi was acquitted by a Telangana special sessions court from the changes of

hate speech Hate speech is defined by the ''Cambridge Dictionary'' as "public speech that expresses hate or encourages violence towards a person or group based on something such as race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation". Hate speech is "usually thoug ...

es delivered on 8 December 2012 in Nizamabad and on 22 December 2012 at

Nirmal Nirmal is a town and the district headquarters of Nirmal district in the Indian state of Telangana. It is famed for its toys made out of wood. The district headquarters is located in the town of Nirmal. It borders the Telangana districts of A ...

town due to contradictory evidences.

Criticism and comments

Owaisi's political opponents refer to him as a "divisive leader". The media frequently criticise him for his anti Hindu, "15 Minutes Speech", and for making death threats against

and

. Several notable people and organisations criticised Owaisi for the speeches. The Andhra Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party president,

G. Kishan Reddy Gangapuram Kishan Reddy (born 15 June 1960) is an Indian politician who is currently serving as Minister of Tourism, Culture and Development of North Eastern Region of India. He is a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He is an MP rep ...

called for booking Owaisi, annulment of his assembly membership and de-recognition of All India Majlis-e Ittihad al-Muslimin. Reddy said that "...religious bigotry, unabashed incitement of religious sentiments and contemptuous insinuation against Hindu gods and goddesses formed the crux of the speeches of a person who was sworn in as an MLA". In a statement issued by the Confederation of Voluntary Associations (COVA) on 30 December, several social activists criticised the speech saying that such "obnoxious" speeches will lead to division of society, violation of peace and conflicts. The social activists demanded exemplary action to prevent such "intolerable" acts in future. The signatories to the statement included

Asghar Ali Engineer Asghar Ali Engineer (10 March 1939 – 14 May 2013) was an Indian reformist writer and social activist. Internationally known for his work on liberation theology in Islam, he led the Progressive Dawoodi Bohra movement. The focus of his work was ...

Swami Agnivesh Swami Agnivesh (born Vepa Shyam Rao; 21 September 193911 September 2020), was an Indian social activist and the founder of Arya Sabha, a political party based on the principles of Arya Samaj.

Mahesh Bhatt Mahesh Bhatt (born 20 September 1948) is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter known for his works in Hindi cinema. A stand-out film from his earlier period is ''Saaransh'' (1984), screened at the 14th Moscow International Film F ...

, Hamid Mohammed Khan,

Sandeep Pandey Sandeep Pandey (born 22 July 1965) is an Indian social activist and the present General Secretary of the Socialist Party (India). He co-founded Asha for Education with Dr. Deepak Gupta (presently Professor at IIT Kanpur) and V.J.P Srivastava ...

and

Ram Puniyani Ram Puniyani (born 25 August 1945) is a former professor of biomedical engineering and former senior medical officer affiliated with the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay. He began his medical career in 1973 and served IIT in various capa ...

. Journalist and BJP leader

Balbir Punj Balbir Punj is an eminent journalist and columnist from India. For more than two and a half decades, Punj has been writing on current topics in important Hindi-English newspapers, magazines. He specializes in dealing with social, economic, and p ...

said that Owaisi's speech was tantamount to inciting Muslims to revolt against the police and army and start a civil war, and he added that the silence of the media was surprising. Senior Congress Leader and National Spokesperson

Raashid Alvi Raashid Alvi (), is an Indian politician who served as a member of the Indian Parliament from both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. He is currently a member of the Indian National Congress party. Early life Raashid Alvi was born in Chandpur, Bi ...

said, "I don't know what Akbar said in his speech and i don't think he said what you just mentioned, but i am sure that

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

Government will do the needful". Asaduddin Owaisi, elder brother of Akbaruddin, refused to comment on the speech saying the matter is sub judice. Congress politician Digvijay Singh said that everybody should think before speaking and demanded action against people making such speeches. TV news channel

Times Now Times Now is an English news channel in India owned and operated by The Times Group. The channel launched on 23 January 2006 in partnership with Reuters. It is a pay television throughout India. Until 2016, it was India's most popular and the m ...

reported that the speech was so inflammatory and so provocative that they had decided not to broadcast it.

Najeeb Jung Najeeb Jung (born 18 January 1951) is a retired Indian Administrative Service officer who served as the 20th Lieutenant Governor of Delhi from July 2013 to December 2016. He previously served as the 13th Vice-Chancellor of the Jamia Millia Islam ...

, vice-Chancellor of the

Jamia Millia Islamia Jamia Millia Islamia () is a central university located in New Delhi, India. Originally established at Aligarh, United Provinces (present-day Uttar Pradesh, India) during the British Raj in 1920, it moved to its current location in Okhla in ...

university, told CNN-IBN that the police were giving excuses of backroom investigation. However, it only took two-minutes to investigate since the "TV cutout" was available for everybody to see and contents of speech were available on Wikipedia for everybody to read. Jung said that the speech incited incendiary feelings between two communities of an extremely serious nature, and refused to believe Owaisi was ill. BJP spokesperson

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi (born 15 October 1957) is an Indian politician and was the Union Minister of Minority Affairs. He had served as a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha from 2002 to 2022 and was Deputy Leader of the House in Rajya Sab ...

said referring to Owaisi and his party that the spirit of

Osama bin Laden Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden (10 March 1957 – 2 May 2011) was a Saudi-born extremist militant who founded al-Qaeda and served as its leader from 1988 until Killing of Osama bin Laden, his death in 2011. Ideologically a Pan-Islamism ...

had entered into such people and they were trying to behave like the Taliban. The speech sparked anger and outrage on Twitter. On 28 December, journalists

Karan Thapar Karan Thapar (born 5 November 1955) is an Indian journalist, news presenter and interviewer working with The Wire. Thapar was associated with CNN-IBN and hosted ''The Devil's Advocate'' and ''The Last Word''. He was also associated with India T ...

and

Swapan Dasgupta Swapan Dasgupta (born 3 October 1955) is an Indian journalist and politician. He is influential within the Indian right wing, writing columns for leading English dailies espousing Hindu nationalism. He is a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha. ...

tweeted "Inflammatory speech by MLA Akbaruddin – Remove police for 15 mins, We will finish off 1 billion Hindus." Writer Taslima Nasrin tweeted that Owaisi is trying to indoctrinate the Muslims of India and such speeches will "produce thousands of Kasabs".

Farhan Akhtar Farhan Akhtar (born 9 January 1974) is an Indian actor, director, screenwriter, playback singer, producer, and television host who works in Hindi films. Born in Mumbai to screenwriters Javed Akhtar and Honey Irani, he grew up under the influen ...

tweeted on 2 January 2013: "How can two girls be arrested in less than 24 hours for a harmless FB post, but Owaisi roams free after his blatantly communal rant. He said Owaisi is doing a disservice to the people he pretends to serve and represent. Fact is he represents only himself and serves only himself". Meanwhile, Salman Khan’s father, Salim Khan, when asked about Owaisi in an interview, stated that Akbaruddin Owaisi is not a Muslim leader.

Shazia Ilmi Shazia Ilmi (born 1970) is an Indian politician. She was previously a television journalist and anchor at Star News. She led a media campaign for an anti-corruption bill (to institute an ombudsman popularly known as the Jan Lokpal Bill). She ...

said "Communalists like Owaisi should be arrested and not be glorified! They spew hatred, divide Indians and insult our nation".

References

External links

Official Website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Owaisi, Akbaruddin Living people Indian Muslims 1971 births Telangana MLAs 2018–2023 Telangana MLAs 2014–2018 Andhra Pradesh MLAs 2004–2009 All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen politicians Politicians from Hyderabad, India Andhra Pradesh MLAs 1999–2004