At the protest rally attended by thousands of people raising their voice against the Citizenship Amendment Act, Hyderabad MP and All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday night read out the Preamble of the Constitution of India, as the protesters chanted along in unison.
Protesting against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC), Owaisi highlighted the need for remembering the Constitution, on the basis of which India became a republic nation.
Owaisi asked the crowd to raise their hands and read out the Preamble in Urdu first, with those who had gathered, repeating his words. Throughout the reading, national flags were seen flying high across the ground.
After the reading in Urdu, Owaisi said, "Maybe members of the Sangh Parivar don't understand Urdu. They will say it is Pakistan's language. So, now (we will read it) in English."
Watch the full video below.
We, the people of India, having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a sovereign socialist secular democratic republic and to secure to all its citizens
JUSTICE, social, economic and political;
LIBERTY of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship;
EQUALITY of status and of opportunity; and to promote among them all
FRATERNITY assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the nation.
Speaking at the event organized by the United Muslim Action Committee at Darussalam, the headquarters of the AIMIM, Owaisi said that the protests were a fight to save the country and its constitution, and urged people to remain peaceful while protesting.
Stating that Indian Muslims are Indians both by choice and by birth, he said they had rejected the two-nation theory of Mohammed Ali Jinnah.
"We rejected Jinnah's message and choose to stay here. This is our loyalty and love for the country," he said, to loud cheers from the crowd.
Owaisi said that they were not against giving citizenship to people of other countries, but pointed out that religion should not be the basis for the same.
Claiming that the National Population Register (NPR) is the beginning of NRC, Owaisi requested the Telangana government not to undertake the exercise.
Thanking Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) for voting against CAA in Parliament, he urged Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao to stay NPR like Kerala.
Owaisi also appealed to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy to reconsider his stand on CAA.