Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Aug 12: Charging Congress of playing second fiddle in the present Coalition Government, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) patron and former Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed today questioned the justification of Congress leadership raising hue and cry over the implementation of 73rd and 74th Amendments and said that party was not serious towards empowerment of the democratic institutions.
“Notwithstanding the oft repeated tall claims, there is no intention of any of the coalition partner to strengthen the democratic institutions because of the obvious reasons as even one and half year after the elections to Panchayats, the powers have not been transferred to the Panchs and Sarpanchs and due to this these grass root level representatives of the people have started resigning”, Mufti Sayeed said while addressing a mammoth public meeting organized at Dussehra Ground, Gandhi Nagar to mark the celebrations of Foundation Day of the party.
What to talk of implementation of 73rd and 74th Amendments, for which the Congress leadership has been raising hue and cry despite being part of the Coalition Government, even the Block Development Councils and District Planning and Development Boards have not been constituted even one and half year after the Panchayat elections, the PDP patron rued, adding “in such circumstances what message, raking up of 73rd and 74th Amendments issue, conveys is understandable to all”.
Continuing tirade against the Congress leadership, the PDP patron said, “Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand, who is holding portfolio of Housing and Urban Development, has failed to ensure elections to urban local bodies during the past over two years”, adding “it is pity that elections to urban local bodies could not be held since February 2010 despite the fact that this has resulted into withholding of over Rs 600 crore grant by the Union Government”.
Describing Omar Abdullah-led Coalition Government as most ineffective regime ever witnessed in the history of State, Mufti Sayeed said, “what else you can describe a Government which has failed to utilize Rs 500 crore in the education sector under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA)”, adding “even those projects of vital importance, which were initiated during our short tenure were shelved by the present regime. This shows their narrow thinking as completion of such projects would have been beneficial for the people of the State and not to any individual or party”.
“This Government has nothing to boast of. The ineffectiveness, corruption and denial of basic amenities like electricity are the only achievements of this regime and people have started thinking of better alternative”, the former Chief Minister said, adding “due to its remarkable performance on all fronts during short stint of 36 months, the People’s Democratic Party has given a viable alternative to the people, which the National Conference never wanted in the State to flourish”.
Reiterating his resolve to change fate of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, he said that PDP has a visionary agenda to solve political, economic and developmental problems of the State. “On the one hand PDP has bigger agenda to solve the internal and external dimensions of Kashmir problem while on the other hand party has programmes and policies to provide basic amenities to the people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh”, he added.
“I don’t indulge in self praising but the people have themselves realized that PDP-led Government had taken radical steps to solve problems of the common masses and bring transparency and accountability in the governance”, he said and reminded that it was all due to its sincere efforts that the previous Government had earned credibility of the people.
“It was during the short stint of PDP that equal treatment was given to all the regions and sub-regions of the State be it in sanctioning developmental funds or delegating decision-making powers”, Mufti Sayeed said, adding “we have revived people’s faith in the democracy and in democratic institutions through our policies and programmes”.
Earlier, PDP president, Mehbooba Mufti said that democracy was never allowed to flourish in Jammu and Kashmir because there was no alternative to the National Conference. She said that elections in the State were brazenly rigged and people were never allowed to elect Government of their own choice. She especially mentioned that infamous 1987 rigged Assembly elections had badly shattered people’s faith in the democracy and it ultimately led to bloodshed and destruction in the State.
“Formation of PDP was turning point in the political history of Jammu and Kashmir because this party has challenged hegemony of National Conference”, she said.
Pointing towards rampant corruption in the State, Mehbooba said, “every section of society is bearing brunt of wrong policies of present regime but youth are the worst victims. Backdoor appointments have been going on at the cost of deserving educated unemployed youth. This Government has no funds to give wages to the poor daily wagers but a large number of senior officers, who have been getting whopping salaries, have been given extension without any reason”.
Calling upon the people to compare 36 years long mis-governance of successive National Conference regimes with 36 months short tenure of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, she said that PDP-led Government had mitigated woes of the common masses through its pro-people policies. “During PDP-led regime neither Baglihar nor Dulhasti hydroelectric projects were commissioned but uninterrupted power was supplied to the people. But despite addition of 800 Mega Watts, the present regime has been resorting to worst ever power cuts”, she further said.
Demanding opening of all traditional routes to make Jammu and Kashmir as gateway of Central Asia, she said, “we want to make J&K free economic zone to address the problem of unemployment”.
Several senior party leaders including Rangil Singh, T S Bajwa, Dr Sameer Koul, MLAs Rafiq Hussain Khan, Choudhary Zulfikar, Basharat Bukhari and MLC Asgar Ali, Ved Mahajan and Falail Singh were present on the occasion.
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