The Telangana government allowed Muslim workers in government agencies, public sector organizations, and educational institutions to leave work one hour earlier than usual in a major gesture to accommodate religious observances during the holy month of Ramadan.
Beginning on March 2, 2025, and lasting until March 31, 2025, the new regulation permits Muslim employees to leave at 4:00 p.m. rather than the customary 5:00 p.m.
All Muslim employees, including teachers, contract and outsourcing workers, and those employed by boards, enterprises, and the public sector, are eligible for the waiver, according to a formal circular released by the General Administration Department. The action is intended to assist staff members in keeping their religious obligations and prayers during the month of Ramadan.
The Telangana government has been accused of “appeasement politics” by BJP leaders, who have criticized the move accordingly. T Raja Singh, a BJP MLA, was disappointed by the decision, saying that the Congress party had only won by using Muslim votes and that such measures were the height of appeasement politics. “Equal rights for all, or none,” Singh added, arguing that this ruling would widen religious gaps.
Amit Malviya, the chairman of the BJP’s IT cell, criticized the Congress government’s decision on social media platform X as being a sort of tokenism, which fueled the dispute even further. Malviya noted that Hindus who practice fasting during holidays like Navratri do not receive any comparable accommodations. He called for opposition to the plan, accusing the government of turning one community’s religious observances into a political ploy.
Syed Nizamuddin, a spokesman for the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee, responded to the criticism by defending the government’s action and calling the BJP’s charges untrue. “BJP is accustomed to making communal statements,” he stated. There was a 13-day holiday in honor of Dussehra. He emphasized that the BJP was trying to mislead the public and that the government handles all festivities.
