‘Renaming institutions won’t change history’
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU Mar 11: National Conference (NC) today regretted that dropping of Sher-e-Kashmir prefix from Srinagar’s premier International Convention Complex, popularly known as SKICC, saying it is yet another attempt of distorting the reality and undermining the stature of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, an epitome of secularism, who rejected Mohammad Ali Jinnah’s two nation theory and preferred secular and democratic India of Mahatma Gandhi.
“Changing of names won’t change the history, which stands testimony to the role and contribution of Sher-e-Kashmir towards the nation in general and Jammu and Kashmir in particular”, senior National Conference leaders said in a statement here this morning.
Expressing anguish over the myopic decision of the Government, they said this will in no way undermine the towering personality and stature of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah whose contribution in democratic awakening of his people cannot be ignored, as it stands acclaimed nationally and internationally.
The statement said that Sheikh was a visionary mass leader and statesman who stood for the just cause of the people alongside his contemporaries during the freedom struggle. His stature cannot be confined in the myopic prism of regional politics, as he fought for democracy when the entire nation was struggling to break the shackles of British under Mahatma Gandhi. Being contemporary of Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, Frontier Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan Gandhi, Maualana Abdul Kalam Azad and many other national leaders, Sheikh fought for the marginalized people of Jammu and Kashmir, irrespective of region, religion, caste or creed, the statement added.
It said his exemplary role during the horrendous days of partition was acknowledged by the suffering masses of the entire Sub-Continent which got reflection in the sentiments of the Mahatma, who had observed ‘light of ray emanated from the soil of Kashmir’.
It enumerated the observations of luminaries like former President Neelam Sanjiva Reddy about inspiring leadership of Sher-e-Kashmir, describing him as Sher-e-Bharat. Similarly, the December 1990 Monograph of Lok Sabha Secretariat is a tribute from eminent parliamentarians of the era, sharing their sentiments about political philosophy of Sheikh in a voluminous compendium. His political standing was so inspiring that the first Prime Minister of the country Pt Jawaharlal Nehru had described Sheikh Abdullah as Jammu and Kashmir and Jammu and Kashmir as Sheikh Abdullah while Atal Behari Vajpayee had called Sher-e-Kashmir as identity of J&K. The statement noted, what L K Advani had to say about Sher-e-Kashmir, “For decades, Kashmir’s politics has come to be identified with the personality of the Sheikh”.
Besides provincial president, Devender Singh Rana, the signatories to the statement included Ajay Sadhotra, Surjeet Singh Slathia, Rattan Lal Gupta, Mushtaq Ahmed Bukhari, Sheikh Bashir Ahmed, Javed Ahmed Rana, Sajjad Ahmed Kichloo, Babu Rampaul, Abdul Gani Malik, Dr. Chaman Lal Bhagat, Qazi Jalal Ud Din, Brij Mohan Sharma, Ajaz Jan, Tarlochan Singh Wazir, Jugal Mahajan, Gurdeep Singh Sasan , Mohinder Singh, Rahim Daad, Haji Mohd Hussain, Master Noor Hussain, Sheikh Abdul Rehman, Mohd Iqbal Bhat, Bimla Luthra, Deepender Kour, Swarn Lata, Satwant Kour Dogra, Pradeep Bali, Vijay Lakshmi Dutta, Anil Dhar, Bhushan Lal Bhat, Wali Dad, Dr. Gagan Bhagat, Sajjad Shaheen, Vijay Lochan, Abdul Gani Teli, Ch. Haroon, Chander Mohan Sharma, Som Nath Khajuria and others.
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