- Thursday, March 13, 2025
The Congress leader said his party wanted the statehood to Jammu and Kashmir be restored before assembly polls, but the BJP wanted to do it after the elections
By: Shajil Kumar
CONGRESS leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir is the collective responsibility of all citizens of the country.
He assured that it will be the first decision of INDIA bloc government at the Centre if the Modi government fails to restore it after assembly polls.
The leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha was addressing an election rally in Dooru assembly segment of Jammu and Kashmir.
AICC general secretary G A Mir is contesting the polls from this seat as the candidate of Congress-NC alliance.
“Restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir is a responsibility of not only the Congress party or INDIA bloc but of every citizen of the country,” Gandhi said.
He said his party had wanted that the statehood to Jammu and Kashmir be restored before holding of assembly polls but the BJP wanted to do it after the elections.
“One thing is sure that Jammu and Kashmir will get back its statehood, I guarantee that. Either the BJP restores it (after polls) or when INDIA bloc forms the next government (at the Centre), it will be the first decision to be taken,” he said.
The former Congress chief said it was for the first time since Independence that a state has been reduced to a Union territory which has led to snatching of rights of the people.
“Upgrading a Union territory to state or dividing a state for creating new states leads to devolution of power as states have assemblies which make their own laws. But reducing a state to a Union territory takes away the powers and this injustice has happened with Jammu and Kashmir,” he added.
LG acting like ‘king’
Gandhi claimed that the lieutenant governor appointed by the Centre in Jammu and Kashmir is acting like a “21st century king” and all benefits are being given to people from outside the UT.
“Here, LG is the king of the 21st century. Whatever he wants, he does it. The people here neither get employment nor any other benefits. The government gives all that to outsiders.
“They won’t do anything about high electricity tariffs. They will give benefits to BJP and RSS people. This fight is not only here but throughout the country…the BJP and RSS are attacking democracy. The institutions like EC, bureaucracy, media, all are being controlled,” he said.
Fight divisive politics: Abdullah
National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Wednesday said his party entered into an alliance with the Congress for the assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir to counter the BJP’s “communal and divisive politics”.
The former chief minister made the remarks while addressing an election rally in support of Congress candidate G A Mir from Dooru seat in south Kashmir.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was also present at the stage.
“They (BJP) are dividing people in the name of religion. That’s why we forged this alliance. We want a life full of dignity. So we all have to come together,” Abdullah said.
He urged the National Conference voters to vote for Mir, the alliance candidate.
“You don’t have to see Congress or NC. You have to hold hands together so that we fight these divisive forces,” he added.
Abdullah claimed that people of Jammu and Kashmir had seen so many difficulties in the past 10 years that they were glad to be alive.
“Remember one thing, the difficulties we faced in these 10 years, I am glad we are still alive. They have made our lives miserable. All the officers are from outside. What do they know about this place, Dooru. We need to save ourselves from these looters,” he said.
The former chief minister asked people to vote in large numbers so that “our sisters, our mothers and our kids walk with honour and dignity”.
Abdullah also referred to reorganisation of Jammu and Kashmir by the Centre in 2019.
“I have never heard of a state being downgraded to a UT. We are a Muslim-majority state and that’s why they want to break us,” he added.
Earlier, talking to reporters in Srinagar while leaving his residence to attend the Dooru rally, Abdullah said his party’s alliance with the Congress was not a compulsion but the need of the hour for development of Jammu and Kashmir and restoration of statehood to the Union territory.
He also said that Gandhi’s visit to the Union territory was a slap on the faces of those who would brand mainstream leaders of Jammu and Kashmir as Pakistanis or Khalistanis.
In response to a question, Abdullah said the NC did not suffer attrition of leaders like other parties ahead of the assembly polls as people have realised that his party is in a position to do something good.
He refused to comment on statements made by PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti against the NC, saying “she keeps on saying different things”.
No exit polls
The Election Commission has prohibited the release of exit polls by media outlets or in any other manner during the assembly elections-2024 for Jammu and Kashmir under the Representation of the People Act, 1951, an official spokesman said.
It is a routine exercise by the EC during elections to ensure a level playing field.
“The exit poll ban on election results, according to the notification, starts from the beginning of hours fixed for the voting on the first day of poll and continues till half an hour after the closing of the voting in J-K,” the spokesman said.
The Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections are scheduled to be held in three phases with voting for the first phase to be held on September 18 followed by the second phase on September 25 and the third phase on October 1. (PTI)
