Congress reminds PM of promise to restore J&K statehood
New Delhi, July 23: The Congress Wednesday announced to intensify its movement for the restoration of the statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, which, it said, “was directed by the Supreme Court of India and repeatedly committed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the people of the erstwhile state.”
Addressing a press conference at the AICC office in the union capital, senior party leaders including party general secretary and J&K CLP leader G A Mir, former MP Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh, general secretary in-charge J&K and Ladakh Dr Naseer Hussain and chief spokesperson J&K PCC Ravinder Sharma said that the common man was suffering in the UT as he was being tossed between the Chief Minister’s secretariat and the Raj Bhawan.
G A Mir recalled that in June 2021, Prime Minister Modi had called a meeting of the representatives of all the political parties of J&K and suggested delimitation, election and then restoration of statehood - in that order. He said, although most of the political representatives had demanded the restoration of statehood before elections, he (PM) had insisted on delimitation, followed by elections, and then statehood.
The CLP leader pointed out, “While the delimitation exercise has been completed with elections also held and an elected government has been in place for the last ten months, the Government of India has yet to fulfill its promise of restoring statehood.”
He said, “The Congress has, since August 5, 2019, maintained that the statehood to J&K must be restored. Besides, Rahul Gandhi while wrapping up his 4000 km Bharat Jodo Yatra in Srinagar along with the Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, had also committed that the party would ensure restoration of statehood.”
Mir thanked the Congress leadership for prioritising the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir during the Monsoon session.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Naseer Hussain pointed out, it was unprecedented that the powers of the elected representatives were with unelected people like the Lieutenant Governor. He said, “Once the powers are restored to the elected government, only then will the people of J&K come to know what sort of scams took place during the regime of unelected people- like the sand and land scams.”
Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh disclosed that although the Congress was the coalition partner of the ruling National Conference, the party had taken a principled stand not to join the government till the statehood was restored. He said the Congress made certain promises to people of Jammu and Kashmir, including the restoration of statehood and it was working towards that by launching a mass movement.
Singh noted that there was a strange situation in Jammu and Kashmir where an elected Chief Minister was being stopped by the J&K Police and prevented from offering prayers.
“He is being made helpless. No file moves ahead without the approval of the LG,” he pointed out, while asserting this must change as not only have the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister promised to restore the statehood, even the Supreme Court of India has also directed the same.
He also demanded that the Union Territory of Ladakh be made like the UTs of Delhi and Puducherry with its own elected legislature.
Meanwhile, the party stated that the Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) president Tariq Hameed Karra, currently in New Delhi, was running with high fever, chest congestion and choked throat.
“Karra is unwell and has been advised by the doctors to have complete rest due to which he could not attend the press conference in AICC. The entire rank and file of JKPCC prayed for the speedy recovery of the JKPCC president,” it was stated.
