I don’t need a certificate of patriotism from anyone, says Azharuddin

Hyderabad: Former Indian cricket captain Mohammed Azharuddin, who took oath as the Cabinet minister in Telangana on Friday, said that he doesn’t need a certificate of patriotism from anyone.

Stating that his inclusion in the Cabinet has nothing to do with the by-election to Jubilee Hills Assembly constituency, he said he did not care what some people were speaking about him.

“They can say anything. I don’t walk to talk about them. I don’t need anybody’s certificate on my patriotism,” he told media persons after taking the oath.

Azharuddin was reacting to Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy’s comment that it’s a matter of shame that the Congress government is giving a ministerial position to a person who has been involved in many cases of tarnishing the country’s prestige and honour, just before the Jubilee Hills by-election.

Azharuddin also remarked that Kishan Reddy has no knowledge about him. “I am a different kind of person. They have been talking about me for a long time. It doesn’t make a difference to me. I know what I am, what I have done for India and how patriotic I am. I don’t need anybody’s certificate,” he said.

Azharuddin, who is also a former MP, said that he was happy to be made a minister. He thanked the Congress party high command, especially AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi. He also thanked AICC in-charge Meenakshi Natarajan and Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy.

The Congress leader said that there is no link between his elevation as a minister and the Jubilee Hills by-election. “It’s a government’s prerogative,” he remarked.

The former cricketer said he would accept whatever portfolio is given to him and would discharge his responsibility with honesty and integrity. He also promised to work for the downtrodden sections of the community.

Azharuddin, who had contested unsuccessfully from Jubilee Hills in 2023, declined to answer queries about the by-election. He said he would talk about it in the constituency.

IANS