Earlier today, recently inducted MoS Home G Kishan Reddy stirred a furore by claiming that Hyderabad is a safe zone for terrorists. Reddy stressed his point by stating that wherever in the country a terrorist incident happens, its roots are found in Hyderabad. The cabinet minister added that illegal immigrants from Myanmar and Bangladesh are staying in the old city of Hyderabad.

“Wherever in the country, there is a terror incident, its roots are in Hyderabad. It has become a safe haven for terrorists in the country,” G Kishan Reddy said.

Speaking to the media, Reddy said, “India is not a dharma satram (free place to stay) for everyone. We will concentrate on preparing a National Citizen’s Register (NCR) to ascertain who all are Indians and who are living illegally in the country.”

Reddy also assured that the police force will be strengthened and modernised to tackle the menace of terrorism.” Our ultimate goal is the country’s integrity, unity and security. All terror supporters will be eliminated.”

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However, his comments ruffled feathers of many political leaders, notably AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, who slammed the Union Minister for categorising Hyderabad as a safe zone for terrorists. Owaisi said, “Since the last 5 years there is peace here, all festivals are peacefully celebrated here. I’d like to ask him in the last 5 years, how many times have NIA, IB and RAW gave in writing that Hyderabad is a safe zone for terror?”

Asaduddin Owaisi, AIMIM: Since past 5 yrs there is peace here, there are no communal riots, religious festivals are peacefully celebrated, it is a growing city and he is speaking like that. What enmity do they have with Telangana, Hyderabad? Do they not like that it is growing? https://t.co/s6fveylyVj — ANI (@ANI) June 1, 2019

Reddy stood firm on his stance, saying that he didn’t say anything wrong when he claimed that there are places in the country where the terror activities are on the rise. Reddy asserted that the NIA has arrested terrorists in Hyderabad every 2-3 months and the terror activities are often traced back to Hyderabad.

MoS (Home) G Kishan Reddy: There are places in country where terror activities are on a rise. If an incident takes place in Bengaluru, Bhopal, its roots are traced to Hyderabad. State police, NIA have arrested terrorists in Hyderabad every 2-3 months. I didn’t say anything wrong. pic.twitter.com/EWvQiHJ8V9 — ANI (@ANI) June 1, 2019

The Telangana Rashtriya Samiti (TRS) said that such comments from a Union Minister send wrong signals to the Businesses who are planning to invest in the city. TRS leader Abid Rasool Khan reassured that his party has nothing against the government taking action against terrorists and alleged that Hyderabad is one of the safest and business-friendly cities in the country.