LS, assembly elections can be held simultaneously: Azad

Ramban, Oct 29: Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP) chairman Ghulam Nabi Azad Sunday stated that parliamentary and assembly elections could be held simultaneously after March hence party cadres should gear up for the same.

“We will have to gear up for parliamentary polls, assembly polls and Panchayat polls as well. The process for these three elections will start after March. In March, the process for parliamentary elections will be underway. Parliamentary and assembly elections can be held together. Even Panchayat elections can be conducted simultaneously, hence you will have four months,” Azad said while asking Ramban party functionaries to get ready and make arrangements.

“In December, I’ll conduct two to four public meetings in internal areas of Ramban. This time you have come here from far off areas of the district for this meeting while in December, I’ll reach out to you,” DPAP chairperson said.

Referring to cancellation of various exams due to paper leak in the recent past leading to frustration among youth, Azad said, “We protested at 85 places – at tehsil headquarter, district headquarter and SDM headquarter. Nothing happened. Then I met LG (Lieutenant Governor), when things still did not move. For a day, I visited New Delhi to meet the Home Minister and I told him that now I would sit (stage a sit-in).”

“I brought to his notice that three lakh young girls and boys had been working for 10-15 years on a meagre amount of Rs 5000. Several lakh youth appeared in exams and cleared for interviews. At the time of interviews, they were told that papers were leaked and hence cancelled. My contention was – why did papers not leak during the last 75 years? Why did it (paper leak) happen five times during the past five years? It means there is some problem with the system. So there are a lot of issues,” the former Chief Minister said.

He said, “I had sanctioned schools and colleges. There were adequate doctors as well (in the hospitals). In the past 15 years, the number of doctors has increased four times but there is a shortage of doctors (in the hospitals). Why? In March this year, I visited (G M) Saroori’s area (Inderwal) and there I met an elderly Gujjar. I asked him about the functioning of the High School and the 20-km road, I had sanctioned for the area. He told me that the school used to function well (during my tenure). Regarding the road, he stated that the first 15 kms of 20-km were completed during one year when I was at the helm of affairs. ‘But after you were gone, the rest of 15 kms still could not be completed in the last 17 years or so.’ – the old man told me. This explains it all vis-à-vis work culture. In one year, a 15-km-road was constructed and in 17 years, there was zero (movement).”

According to a press note issued by DPAP, Azad promised people that his politics would always be based on moral and social values and he would never discriminate among his people on the basis of religion. He said the foundation of DPAP is itself based on same principles since he believes in inclusiveness and equality and only promotes merit. “ In my political career I have never been discriminative and helping anyone for being from a particular religion. Because if we practice such tactics it can prove disastrous and insidious,” he said.