Fayaz Bukhari
Srinagar, Nov 15: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah today blamed his coalition partner Congress and opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) for not supporting him in the revocation of Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) from the State.
While speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an election rally at Ganderbal that is going to vote in the first phase of 5-phase elections in the State, Omar said had the two parties supported him on the issue of AFSPA something could have been achieved.
“Had they extended their complete support to us, perhaps we could have talked on a unified platform and we could have achieved something. But they did not, they saw politics in it and thought that its credit would go to the NC and they would be at loss, so they opposed it,” Chief Minister said.
Omar said that he tried his best to achieve his goal but couldn’t do it. “I say this that I have not been able to do it. It is not something which is hidden. I tried my best. If I had lacked in my efforts then people would have said so. But unfortunately, we couldn’t do it. But if not in this Government, then in the next one, we will do it,” he said.
Chief Minister said that except former Home Minister, P Chidambaram, no one from Congress party supported him. “There are no two thoughts. Though I cannot say that Congress was not with me because no one helped me in this the way Chidambaram did”, he said.
Omar said: “I wish there were one or two more Ministers like Chidambaram in the Cabinet Committee on Security, then today we would have come a long way forward in the revocation of AFSPA.”
Chief Minister, however, said while Chidambaram failed to convince his Cabinet colleagues at the Centre, I could not convince my Cabinet colleagues from Congress.
Omar said that PDP president, Mehbooba Mufti, didn’t support him and instead asked him to talk to armed forces for its revocation. “When I talked about revocation of AFSPA, the PDP president said that you cannot do it as such and will have to take the advice of the forces. Whatever, they say today, let them, but they did not support us that time”, he added.
Chief Minister said that PDP didn’t support him as the opposition party saw politics in it and thought the credit would go to the NC.
Earlier while addressing a party rally at Ganderbal, Omar said that he is surprised at Congress taking credit of all goods things which the Government did during last six years and attributes bad things to the NC. “They are picking and choosing the good things done by my Government and publicizing them as their achievements while at the same time criticizing NC for things ironically they couldn’t themselves deliver on”, he said.
Chief Minister said that NC and Congress were together for six years but they take credit for creation of Administrative units. “Some people who are opposing us today are the ones who were in the Government with us for the last six years. We created new administrative units, but they are taking credit”, he added.
Omar said a Congress Minister put the blame of floods on the Chief Minister when it was his party colleague who was in charge of the concerned department. “It is fine with me when I was held responsible for the floods, but what about the development then? The credit too should go to me then”, he asked.
The Chief Minister said that the Congress says the roads were built by them. They claim credit for new administrative units, for healthcare and employment. “Is this justice that they claim credit for developmental works while holding me responsible for the floods?” he asked.
Omar said that he pushed for pro-people measures despite constraints of coalition politics. “While one may understand the need for Congress to do so given their political worries, the people are not as gullible as they might think them to be. The people know that it was National Conference that relentlessly and inexorably pushed all pro-people measures through the constraints of coalition politics time and again during the last six years despite regular hesitation and hurdles that we had to encounter”, he added.
Chief Minister welcomed, the life sentences handed over to the Army personnel in the Machil fake encounter case. He said that this was a vindication of NC’s struggle for justice for the families of the Machil victims. “We never gave up on our demand for justice in the Machil case and we never surrendered our protest until a case was registered against the accused troops. We welcome this verdict and assure the people that we will continue to ask for the re-opening of the Pathribal Case as well and will always fight for the cause of justice and the truth”, he said.
Omar lashed out PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed for trying to play “both sides of the game”. “He made a melodramatic appeal to militants asking them to surrender and later sent them to graves”, he said.
Chief Minister said that Mufti’s healing touch started with lie and ended with a betrayal with the youth of this State. “PDP opposed the Rehabilitation Policy for our youth who had crossed over to the other side of the Line of Control and wanted to return to their homes and normal lives. We supported that resolution while PDP opposed it and today more than 300 of our youth have returned from across the LoC under this rehabilitation policy”, he added.
Highlighting his achievements, Omar said: “Similarly we changed the system of giving passports and made as many relaxations as we possibly could for facilitating the kith and kin of ex-militants to get their passports. These youth were blacklisted by the Mufti Government and were denied their basic right to a passport during the PDP-Congress Government. While there might be cases where passports couldn’t be made available yet, there are thousands and thousands of cases of previously blacklisted applicants receiving passports in our tenure due to our persistent efforts. These are significant, concrete initiatives we have taken for our youth and for the spirit of reconciliation.”
Chief Minister said: “For 40 years, my family – my grandfather, my father and me – have been asking for votes for themselves from this constituency and it is for the first time that I am seeking votes from here for anyone other than the family.”
Omar said that the time has now come that the constituency should chose its own candidate. “I slowly realised that time has come that Ganderbal needs a representative from the area only. That a NC candidate must belong to the area,” he said.
Chief Minister said: “Your expectations from the MLA that he should be around … For wedding ceremonies or funerals… For each happy moment or the moment of sadness, I could not do that much and for that I would have apologised to you but time did not permit me. However, I did not lack in developmental works,” he said.
Omar said: “For the last three years, I slowly realised that the people of Ganderbal have done so much for my family. You gave us votes and never asked us that when you are from Srinagar, why ask for votes from Ganderbal. We asked you for votes, you gave them”.
Chief Minister said that the decision to skip Ganderbal is not an easy one. “This decision was not an easy one. I did not take this decision under emotions or under any threat or compulsion,” he said.
Omar said: “I am not contesting elections from Ganderbal, but the huge place that Ganderbal enjoys in my heart will not be in any one else’s heart. And wherever I would be, whichever chair I be occupying, I will try my best to take forward the developmental works of Ganderbal.”
“Even knowing that I would not contest from Ganderbal, I gave the constituency a parting gift as I signed a Rs 820 crore 90 megawatt new hydro-electric project just two days before the model code of conduct came into effect,” Chief Minister said.
The NC working president said that after being elected to the legislature from here in 2008 he tried his best to settle the debt of the people. “I lost the elections from here but I did not go away. I returned in Parliament elections to try my luck and you made me a winner. Then I fought the election of 2008 from here and tried my best to settle the debt of the people of Ganderbal,” he said.
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