Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Oct 16: Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Chowdhary today said that a big
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responsibility has been put on his shoulders and that it was challenging to fill the 10 years of vacuum in just five years.
Chowdhary after taking the oath as Deputy Chief Minister told Excelsior: “I have been allotted the Deputy CM’s portfolio which is a big responsibility on my shoulders. I will try to fulfil my responsibility to the best of my capabilities. It is very difficult to fill the vacuum of the past 10 years. I have full faith in the leadership of CM Omar Abdullah and hope to serve the people of Jammu region even though the task is full of challenges.”
He said the decision to take oath as the Deputy CM of J&K came to him as a big surprise. “I was informed about the development at SKICC only,” he added.
Chowdhary who defeated BJP J&K chief Ravinder Raina from Nowshera constituency, said that it a great honour for the people of Pir Panjal that he was made Deputy Chief Minister.
“It is a matter of pride for the people of Pir Panjal, particularly my Nowshera constituency. I am truly grateful to our leaders, Omar Abdullah and Farooq Abdullah, for giving us the status of Deputy Chief Minister, which was previously beyond our reach, as it was difficult for us to even secure a Cabinet Ministry,” he said.
Chowdhary said that by making him as the Deputy CM, Omar has shown Jammu is as important for him as the Valley.
“It is also a matter of pride for the people of Jammu, who have long demanded a Chief Minister from the region. Today, Omar Abdullah has shown that Jammu is as important to him as the Valley. This party has always made decisions without any discrimination based on caste, creed, or religion,” he said.
Taking a dig at BJP, Chowdhary said that they should first appoint a Governor from Jammu province then demand a Chief Minister from the province. “To those demanding a Chief Minister from Jammu, I say: first install a Governor from Jammu and then make demands of others,” he added.
The Dy CM hoped that the Centre would fulfil its promise of restoration of Statehood to J&K. “This is not a challenge, as the Home Minister stated in Parliament that outsiders would not be allowed to buy land or secure jobs in Jammu and Kashmir. He also promised to restore Statehood. Today, we have been elected by the people, and we hope the Home Minister will respect this mandate, strengthen democracy, and restore Statehood,” he said.
Chowdhary asked if Himachal Pradesh has special status, Bihar is demanding it, why was it snatched from J&K.
“If Himachal Pradesh has special status, why not Jammu and Kashmir? If Bihar is seeking special status, why was ours taken away? We are not asking for anything new,” he said.
The Dy CM said that restoration of Darbar Move is essential for the economy of Jammu. “Our priority is to bridge the gap between the people and the Government created over the last 10 years. We must also tackle issues such as unemployment, electricity shortages, tourism and education. Above all, restoring the Darbar Move is essential, as the economy has suffered greatly. We need to keep Jammu’s economy alive,” he said.
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