Jammu: Apni Party Senior Vice President Ghulam Hassan Mir today emphasised the need to strengthen brotherhood and unity between the two regions through better understanding and to fight elements creating divisions among the people of Jammu and Kashmir, the erstwhile state.
“Political parties are often involved in divisive rhetoric that creates a sense of insecurity, regional antagonism, and communal hatred,” Mir said while addressing a workers’ meeting at the Gandhi Nagar office of the Apni Party in Jammu district.
The meeting was attended by Provincial President, Jammu, S. Manjit Singh, along with provincial, district, and various wing leaders to discuss preparations for the sixth foundation day celebrations across Jammu province.
During the deliberations, Ghulam Hassan Mir issued directions regarding public outreach programmes and the regular redressal of issues faced by the people.
He said that the people want an alternative in the political system of Jammu and Kashmir and that the Apni Party has been receiving support, especially as the elected government — the National Conference — has lost ground.
“The people have realised how the National Conference and other parties have failed to meet expectations, and how their promises have remained unfulfilled,” he said, citing examples of how political parties in Jammu and Kashmir resort to communal and regional rhetoric for political survival.
In these circumstances, he asked party leaders to hold regular meetings with the public and educate them about the party’s policy and agenda of equitable development and an end to a biased approach.
Meanwhile, he recalled how the party came into existence when no other political party in Jammu and Kashmir was ready to raise the voice of the people.
“It was only the Apni Party that took the initiative and became the voice of the people, protecting their land and jobs for the local inhabitants of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.
Provincial President, Jammu, S. Manjit Singh also addressed the gathering, thanking the party leadership for reposing faith in the leaders of the Jammu division and for providing adequate representation to the region.
He said the party has gained ground in different areas of Jammu and that its membership has increased. He added that the people of Jammu feel the BJP has misled them with hollow slogans of development and employment.
On the other hand, he alleged, the same BJP has given free rein to non-locals to exploit natural resources and the livelihood of local youth.
He was referring to the mining mafia, which he claimed has the support of the authorities, while local miners’ families are struggling to meet basic necessities.
