Srinagar: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Friday hit out at the Lieutenant Governor administration, claiming that arbitrary transfers and the use of bulldozers by the Raj Bhavan are part of a “conspiracy” to “malign” the elected government in the Union territory.
Abdullah was reacting to the demolition of several structures, including the house of a journalist in Jammu on Thursday, by the Jammu Development Authority (JDA). The demolition has been widely criticised.
“The officers posted by Raj Bhawan use bulldozers independently, without the elected government’s permission and without consulting the concerned minister. It indicates a clear conspiracy to tarnish the image of the elected government,” Abdullah told reporters here.
The chief minister emphasised that this is the reason his government has been stressing the need to have the authority to assign field staff within their departments.
“It is okay that you post principal secretaries, commissioner secretaries and additional chief secretaries, etc, but the CEOs, etc, of the development authorities should be posted by the elected government. The revenue staff should be posted with our permission. Regrettably, officers are assigned to these posts without any discussion with us. Then those officers take dictation from somewhere else, take out bulldozers and start the action,” he added.
Abdullah alleged that a conspiracy is afoot and that these actions appear to be targeting a specific community.
“Is there only this single place in Jammu where allegations of encroachment have been levelled? I have asked the department to furnish the full list wherever there is an illegal encroachment on JDA land. I also want to see why this single person was targeted by the authorities and if his religion is the reason for that. Because it can’t be that there is merely a single allegation of encroachment on all JDA land,” he said.
Referring to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha’s earlier remarks that there was no interference in the working of the elected government, the chief minister said, “But, this is a clear case of interference. Someone should show me a file indicating that the concerned minister was informed or that any discussion occurred with us.”
The chief minister maintained that while no one supports illegal encroachments on government land, “these people who use the bulldozer in a pick-and-choose manner to malign the elected government need to mend their ways”.
He mentioned that he would have taken action against the officer involved if that officer had been appointed by the elected government.
“How can you take such a huge step without the permission of the minister? Somewhere, I smell a conspiracy here. If this had happened only once, I might view it as an error, but this is an ongoing pattern designed to malign and defame the elected government only because these people cannot digest the election results,” he added.
He challenged the JDA CEO to publish a list of illegal encroachers in the newspapers.
“Let him publish the names of the encroachers in Jammu, then we will see who is there. Solely targeting individuals based on religion or location indicates nothing but a political conspiracy,” Abdullah said.
Abdullah said the LG administration has hollowed the authority of the elected government and is running Jammu and Kashmir from Raj Bhawan by empowering officers without accountability.
He said key institutions remain outside the control of the elected government, undermining democratic authority in the Union Territory.
“SKIMS is not with us. There are huge vacancies there. BGSB University and IUST are not with the elected government. Even the Information department is not with us. What was the reason to appoint an IAS officer there when the post was being held by a JKAS officer?” he asked.
He said confusion must end and the Reorganisation Act should be implemented in letter and spirit. “We are not crossing any jurisdiction. But don’t tell us there is no interference when bulldozers are running without our consent. Officers are getting courage from somewhere else. We all know where it is coming from,” he said.
The chief minister reiterated his demand for immediate restoration of statehood, accusing the Centre of delaying the process under the garb of security incidents. “Pahalgam attack and Delhi attack are being used as excuses. Law and security are not our mandate. Do not shift blame on us to deny statehood,” he said.
On power supply, Abdullah said his government is committed to providing electricity but responsibility must be shared. “We want to give electricity, but people must pay bills honestly. We are installing meters so we can give free units as promised. Without meters, promises can’t be delivered,” he said.
On the issue of reservation, he said the Cabinet subcommittee report has been completed and will soon be placed before the Cabinet for discussion and action.
Addressing the issue of daily-wagers, the chief minister said the problem was inherited and not created by the present government. “We have sought time. We are working on it. This issue will not be ignored,” he said.
Taking potshots at the PDP, Omar Abdullah accused the party of political deceit. “PDP told people it would stop BJP, then allied with the BJP. That was the biggest fraud in recent political history,” he said.
Responding to allegations of inaction, Omar Abdullah asked critics to wait before judging his government. “Evaluate us after five years. We have not abandoned our manifesto,” he claimed.
On cabinet expansion, he said the issue would be handled in consultation with the party president. (With inputs from PTI & KNT)
