Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Oct 30: National Conference (NC) chief spokesperson and Member of the Legislative Assembly from Zadibal, Tanveer Sadiq, announced today that the party will not participate in the Union Territory (UT) Foundation Day event scheduled to take place at SKICC on October 31.
The UT administration will observe October 31 as the “UT Foundation Day,” with Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha presiding as the chief guest. In addition to bureaucrats, invitations have been extended to the new legislators of the National Conference. However, the NC has officially decided to skip the event.
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When asked about the decision to skip the event while speaking to reporters, Sadiq said categorically that no one from the party would participate, as they do not recognize the occasion. “We believe what was taken from us in 2019 was wrong, baseless, unconstitutional and immoral. We demand that Jammu and Kashmir’s Statehood be restored at the earliest so that we can enjoy the same status as other States in the country,” he said.
He further emphasized the importance of reviving the Darbar Move, a biannual tradition in Jammu and Kashmir since the time of the Maharajas, which was discontinued by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). “We have included the revival of the Darbar Move in our manifesto. It is part of our promise to restore what has been a long-standing tradition,” he said.
He stressed that Statehood restoration and the revival of the Darbar Move are interconnected. “That is why we hope Statehood will be restored soon. We want to revive the practice where people from Kashmir would travel to Jammu, fostering relationships. The BJP broke that thread, but we aim to reconnect Jammu and Kashmir through this process,” he said.
When asked about rumours that Statehood restoration might be delayed until after Maharashtra’s elections, Sadiq said: “Reviving the Darbar Move is one of our guarantees, and we will try to implement it soon.”
He said that the Government is still in its early stages and assured that all promises will be fulfilled. “While people have high expectations, the mandate is for five years, and all promises, including 12 guarantees and 36 commitments, will be fulfilled gradually,” he added.
Sadiq said that the abrogation of Article 370 and 35A remains the most pressing issue. “We face many challenges, such as electricity shortages and food grain distribution, which we have addressed in our guarantees. However, the biggest issue of all is the abrogation of 370 and 35A, which needs to be discussed,” he said.
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