– Abdul Bari Masoud
New Delhi: Manithaneya Makkal Katchi (MMK) president M.H. Jawahirullah has announced a protest and conference in Madurai on July 6 to raise awareness about the lack of political representation for minorities and to demand the repeal of the Waqf Amendment Act, which he said goes against the Constitution.
Jawahirullah, who represents Papanasam in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, expressed concern over the poor presence of Muslims in both Parliament and state legislatures.
Speaking to Radiance News, he said that as of June 2025, Muslims held only 39 out of 776 seats in Parliament—24 in the Lok Sabha and 15 in the Rajya Sabha. This accounts for just 4.42% and 6.4% respectively.
He stressed that Muslims lack representation at all levels, and the situation is the same in state assemblies. Out of 4,123 MLAs across India, only 296 are Muslims, which is a mere 7.18%. Even in states with large Muslim populations, their voice in law-making remains weak, he added.
Talking about Tamil Nadu, he said that out of 234 assembly seats, only 7 are held by Muslims. Even at the local body level, Muslim representation has declined. For instance, Greater Chennai Corporation has only 4 Muslim ward councillors, and similar conditions prevail in Coimbatore, Tiruchi, Madurai, and Tirunelveli Corporations.
Jawahirullah also demanded that the Waqf Amendment Act be scrapped. He said Section 40 of the Waqf Act allowed Waqf Boards to determine whether a property was Waqf. But the amended Act took away that right.
On alliance politics, he stated that DMK opposes BJP’s ideology and MMK remains part of an alliance that stands against fascism. Reacting to Amit Shah’s criticism of the DMK government, he said the Union Home Minister has no authority to comment. He defended the DMK government, saying it is implementing various social welfare schemes.
MMK recently held its executive committee meeting in Madurai to prepare for the upcoming July 6 conference.
