Congress party opposes move to nominate five MLAs before new govt formation in J&K

Jammu, Oct 04: The Congress party today vehemently opposed the move to nominate five MLAs before the formation of the government in Jammu and Kashmir, calling any such action an attempt to commit fraud against democracy, the mandate of the people, and the basic spirit of the Constitution.

Addressing a press conference at PCC Jammu today, JKPCC Working President Raman Bhalla, along with PCC Sr. Vice President and Chief Spokesperson Ravinder Sharma and Vice President Incharge HQ Ved Mahajan, said that the move reflects the desperation of the BJP to manipulate numbers, as they have no legitimate means to form the government.

Sharma stated that under the constitutional framework, the Lieutenant Governor (L-G) must act on the aid and advice of the council of ministers. He emphasized that utilizing the provision of nomination to alter a majority into a minority would be a misuse of power, especially if such a situation arises after the counting of votes. He asserted that the Congress-NC alliance is poised to secure a comfortable majority to form the government, stressing that any such move is anti-democratic and a fraud against the mandate of the people who voted to elect 90 MLAs.

“The right to form a new government lies with the elected MLAs of whichever party or coalition gains a majority in the elections. Any nominations contemplated before the government formation in J&K UT would be a fraud on democracy and the people's mandate,” he stated. He further added that it cannot be the spirit of the Constitution or democracy to empower a person to convert a majority into a minority or vice versa.

Sharma noted that under the Constitution, the governor must act based on the council of ministers' advice. Therefore, the L-G should nominate five MLAs only after the new government takes over and recommends the names for nomination. Any attempt to carry out nominations prior to government formation would contravene the basic concept of democracy and the Constitution's spirit.

He also mentioned that the Congress Party had advocated for appropriate representation in the assembly for PoJK refugees, Kashmiri Pandits, and other minorities before the delimitation commission. They submitted a written memorandum and raised strong objections to the proposed report, demanding a Sikkim-like reservation of seats for these communities. Sharma highlighted that Buddhist monks and nuns of 111 minorities have been provided assembly seats in Sikkim, allowing only them to contest and cast votes. He argued that a similar election pattern would have given KPs and PoJK communities the chance to elect genuine representatives, but the BJP has betrayed them. He questioned the rationale behind providing only one seat to the 12 to 14 PoJK community, contrary to the BJP’s promise of eight seats.

Sharma speculated that the BJP's provision for nomination is likely an attempt to manipulate the people's mandate to strengthen their coalition. The Congress asserted that the new government should take over first before nominating individuals based on merit, granting them all powers and voting rights as was previously the case with the two women MLAs nominated by the governor on the advice of the elected government.(News Vibes of India)