KULGAM: National Conference MP Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi on Saturday said he would not participate in the party’s proposed protest on the restoration of statehood, asserting that his focus would remain on the issue of Article 370.
Speaking to reporters in Kulgam, Ruhullah said he did not attend the National Conference convention held to mark the death anniversary of Begum Akbar Jehan as he had neither been invited nor required to attend.
“They don’t need me anymore. I was not called and I was not there,” he said, adding that he was occupied with Muharram-related programmes in Kulgam, Srinagar and other places.
Ruling out participation in the party’s proposed protest at Jantar Mantar, Ruhullah said the National Conference had not received a mandate from the people on the issue of statehood alone.
He said he would continue to raise issues concerning the people of Jammu and Kashmir, particularly the restoration of Article 370.
The MP also alleged that shifting the political discourse from Article 370 to statehood amounted to advancing the BJP’s narrative, saying the National Conference had campaigned during the elections on the issue of Article 370. (KNO)
