China is encircling India: Farooq
Nishikant Khajuria
JAMMU, Jan 17: National Conference vice-president and former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today dared the Central Government to hold Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir along with the upcoming Lok Sabha polls if it was serious about its idea of ‘one nation, one election’.
Talking to media persons on the sidelines of Gujjar-Bakerwal conference at Sher-e-Kashmir Bhawan in Jammu, which was also addressed by National Conference president Dr Farooq Abdullah, Omar said the Government that talks about one nation one election, is unable to put it money where the mouth is, even in one State much less than the entire nation.
“If the Government is serious about ‘one nation, one election’, I hope that they will put their money where their mouth is and show us that it is possible by doing it first in Jammu and Kashmir. We have Parliament elections in a few months and let us have Assembly elections at the same time and then see it,” he said.
However, at the same time, Omar Abdullah doubted the Government’s intentions on the idea of holding unified election and said: “If you cannot have elections of Jammu Kashmir Assembly together with Parliament now, how do you ever imagine that you would be able to have Assembly and Parliament elections at the same time when States like UP, Bihar and others, which require so much presence of security forces when they will also go to the polls simultaneously,” he said.
Replying to a query, the NC leader ruled out possibility of pre-poll or post poll alliance in Jammu Kashmir and claimed that his party will get a resounding mandate when elections are held here.
“I believe that when the mandate is delivered, it will be a resounding mandate for one-party rule and therefore the need for any sort of post poll alliance will simply not exist. That is what I believe. We are not even considering a post poll alliance situation,” he said in response to a question about the possibility of going with any other party in case of a fractured mandate in the Assembly elections.
Regarding the seat distribution for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in the wake of Congress claiming to win all the six Parliamentary seats in J&K and Ladakh, Omar Abdullah dismissed the talk of conflicts within the INDIA.
“There have been no talks with Congress on seat sharing yet. Let talks happen and then we will decide who will contest from where. But at the moment we would want INDIA bloc to win all six seats in J&K and Ladakh in upcoming Lok Sabha polls,” he said and added: “Several people want to contest. Let us first talk to them. Three seats are with the INDIA bloc, there is no need to discuss them but the talks will be held on how to win the rest of the three seats currently held by BJP.”
Hitting out at BJP for allegedly politicizing the Ram Temple issue ahead of Lok Sabha elections, Omar Abdullah said that resorting to religious appeals for electoral victories indicates a failure of their governance.
“If, after remaining in power for 10 years, BJP resorts to using religion for winning election, it signals a failure in their governance. This is what they wanted to show to the people, and there is nothing beyond this,” he said and added: I will hope BJP needs to be questioned on this and let the answer comes through vote.”
About participating in the ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’, Omar said that he and his father Farooq Abdullah have received an invitation in this regard from Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge . “We will discuss and where it is feasible, will take part in it,” he said.
Alleging that the process for return of Kashmiri Pandits to the valley has received a setback in this Government rather being taken forward, the former Chief Minister said that in the last two years, there was concerted move on part of those KPs working in the Valley demanding their settlement outside Kashmir which is a phenomenon only of recent years. He emphasised the need for the Kashmiri Pandit community to assess the situation honestly.
“As far as the anniversary (of exodus day on January 19) is concerned, it remains a dark day. National conference and National Conference leadership have always believed that the Kashmir is incomplete until those people who left the Valley in this turmoil are able to return,” he said.
Earlier, while addressing the day-long Gujjar-Bakerwal Conference, Omar emphasised on efforts from both sides for safeguarding the interests of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. “NC is fighting a peaceful, and democratic battle on multiple fronts. But our efforts won’t succeed untill the Gujjar and Bakerwal community joins forces with us. We are not fighting for a particular community, religion, or region. We are fighting for every single individual of J&K. We are fighting for our existence, our democratic rights, our identity and our dignity,” he said.
In his address to the conference, Dr Farooq Abdullah expressed serious concern over the prevailing situation across the world owing to military conflicts between different countries and stressed for having friendly relations with the neighbouring countries.
He particularly mentioned that China was encircling India by increasing its presence and influence in the countries surrounding India. “China has reached Maldives. Already, it has influence on Sri-Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh and Pakistan,” he said and reiterated that friendship with neighbours will ensure development while hostilities bring only destruction.
Laying stress on unity, Farooq Abdullah said that we should learn from our previous mistakes and move forward. “The challenges ahead of Jammu and Kashmir can only be surmounted if every section of the society joins hands with NC to protect the unique identity of J&K,” he said.
The NC president said his party has been a votary of exclusive rights of tribals on the natural resources. “Policies pursued by us have brought difference into the lives of our tribals, but much more needs to be done to bridge the gap,” he added.
The Gujjar and Bakerwal Conference was organized by senior NC leader Choudhary Muhammad Aslam and attended by Ali Mohd Sagar, Dr Sheikh Mustafa Kamaal, Ajay Kumar Sadhotra, Mian Altaf Ahmed, Rattan Lal Gupta and others.
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