Hyderabad: Senior Congress leader Shabbir Ali has urged the Muslim community to integrate education and political participation as part of a shared journey toward empowerment. Speaking before Friday prayers at Masjid-e-Kaneez Fatima in Ameerpet, he described every vote as an act of dignity and every classroom as a foundation for progress.
He said the strength of democracy lies in participation. “When you vote, you defend your rights. When you stay silent, others decide for you,” he said, encouraging Muslims to ensure 100% polling in the Jubilee Hills by-election.
Highlighting the latest state survey, Shabbir Ali observed that Muslims form 13% of Telangana’s population but only 2.5% enjoy economic stability. “This gap exists because we have moved away from education,” he explained. “Voting and learning are both tools of self-reliance.”
Shabbir Ali urges parents to make education a daily discipline
He recalled that the Congress government’s 4% reservation policy in 2004 empowered nearly 22 lakh Muslim students. “That initiative turned a generation toward professional success,” he said. Citing Kaloji Narayana Rao University’s data, he added that 1,248 Muslim students — including 700 girls — entered medical colleges this year, calling it a “remarkable sign of progress.”
Shabbir Ali said education begins at home with parental guidance, discipline, and time management. “We must teach our children to read, to think, and to lead. Education gives direction, like a river finding its way to the ocean,” he said.
He emphasised that neglecting education weakens community identity. “The first Quranic command is ‘Iqra’—to read and learn. We must return to that principle,” he said, asserting that knowledge and faith are inseparable.
Concluding his speech, Shabbir Ali said Muslims must not remain spectators. “Education gives dignity, and voting gives power. Together, they safeguard our future,” he said, pledging continued advocacy for educational and welfare programmes.
