Jammu: Union minister Jitendra Singh on Wednesday said the District Development Council (DDC) elections happening for the first time in Jammu and Kashmir have heralded a new chapter in the history of democracy.
He said that these polls have also “exposed the unique inner contradictions afflicting the opposition parties in Jammu and Kashmir as most of the candidates fielded by the opposition parties are avoiding using pictures of their leaders on posters and are also displaying their party symbol very discreetly and selectively.”
Addressing a public meeting in the far-flung remote area of Rajgarh under Ramban district where the BJP is facing a contest both from the Congress as well as the NC, the minister said the most interesting feature is that Congress candidates are not inclined to invite their central leaders like Rahul Gandhi or the Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president to campaign for them “because of apprehension that this might antagonise the voters”.
“Similarly, National Conference candidates do not want to invite their top leaders like Farooq Abdullah or Omar Abudullah to campaign for them because of the fear that by doing so they may rather lose some votes instead of adding,” the minister of State for Personnel said.
Referring to development in Jammu and Kashmir in the last six years, he said before 2014 there was no proper road connectivity to Rajgarh and many a times he had to go back because of a sudden landslide midway.
“However, in the last four years there has been an upgradation of road along with blacktopping and Rajgarh is not only connected with Ramban but also connected with Kastigarh by road,” Singh said.
In the education sector, he said that this region has been given three degree colleges in the last four years.
He accused the earlier public representatives of deliberately obstructing development as well as wider exposure of the people living in the remote areas so that they could continue their own hegemony and dominance.
