Owaisi criticises the Centre for its decision to grant a half-day holiday on Jan 22

All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen president and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi on Thursday criticised the Centre for its decision to grant a half-day holiday to all its offices on January 22, the day when Lord Rama idol’s ‘Prana Pratishtha’ will be held at the Ram Temple in Ayodhya. Owaisi, in a post on X, said the Centre had cancelled the Milad-un-Nabi holiday. “A constitutional authority did away with a 30-minute break on Fridays for



Namaz. 

This is ‘development for all appeasement for none (except majority).” Owaisi’s comments were in reference to a 2017 announcement by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath cancelling 15 public holidays, including the one for Milad un Nabi, and the Rajya Sabha Chairman changing the post-lunch break start timing from 2.30 pm to 2 pm, a facility that Muslim MPs had said enabled them to offer their afternoon prayers on Fridays.