Recalling the custodial death of gangsters-turned-politicians Mukhtar Ansari and Atiq Ahmed in Uttar Pradesh under mysterious circumstances, AIMIM MLA Akbaruddin speculated about a similar fate for him and Lok Sabha MP Asaduddin, popularly known as the Owaisi brothers.

Speaking at an Eid Milap programme in the Yakutpura area of Hyderabad, from where his elder brother is contesting the Lok Sabha elections, the AIMIM floor leader in the Telangana Assembly sounded prophetic when he asked the gathering to imagine a situation where there is no AIMIM and the Owaisi brothers.

He said, “The situation is such that we don’t know how we would die. We don’t know if Akbaruddin Owaisi would be poisoned to death in jail. We don’t know if Akbaruddin Owaisi and Asaduddin Owaisi would be shot dead while taking them to the hospital from jail,” said Akbaruddin Owaisi.

He, however, clarified that he hoped nothing of the kind would happen to them.

Mukhtar Ansari had complained of being poisoned in jail before his eventual death and Atiq Ahmed and his brother warned against their custodial death before being gunned down while being taken to the hospital from jail. Assaduddin received death threats following his visit to the family of Mukhtar Ansari after his death.

The AIMIM barely scraped through in some of the Assembly constituencies under the Hyderabad Lok Sabha seat during the Assembly polls held in November last year. While appealing to the people to support his party, Akbaruddin Owaisi referred to the gangsters-turned-politicians of Uttar Pradesh. He also urged the gathering to close their eyes and think about what could happen without AIMIM and Owaisi brothers.

He appealed to Muslims to support the AIMIM and solicited their suggestions to arrest the lapses in the party.

Meanwhile, BJP candidate from Hyderabad K Madhavi Latha said the Congress was apprehensive about fielding a candidate from the Lok Sabha constituency. The ruling party in the state is yet to announce a candidate in this key constituency while the BRS has already named one belonging to a BC community to eat into BJP’s vote bank.