Claiming that Samajwadi Party was "not real well-wishers" of Muslims, Rashtriya Ulema Council president Maulana Amir Rashadi Madni today announced that he would contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Azamgarh against SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.
"As per the decision of the Ulema Council's parliamentary board, I will contest the upcoming elections from Azamgarh against the SP chief," Rashadi told reporters here.
Rashadi said after coming to power in Uttar Pradesh with the help of Muslim votes two years ago, the SP government has proved that "it's not the real well-wishers of the community".
"The Supreme Court's recent remarks on the negligence of the state government to prevent the Muzaffarnagar riots has put a stamp on this," Rashadi, who had been leading a campaign against the alleged Batla house encounter, said.
The president of Ulema Council, which has influence in some eastern UP districts, said SP had promised to implement 18 per cent reservation for Muslims and recommendations of the Sachchar Committee and the Rangnath Misra Commission, but has not fulfilled them yet.
In the 2009 Lok Sabha elections, the Rashtriya Ulema Council had fielded candidates in six seats -- Ambedkarnagar, Machchlishahr, Lalganj, Jaunpur, Lucknow and Kanpur.
