Jammu: Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary on Saturday rejected claims that the National Conference (NC) led government was delaying the elections to Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) but asserted that there should be an administrative and political structure in which elected representatives could genuinely exercise their powers.
Citing the existing Union Territory arrangement, he said, “Today, this is the Omar Abdullah government, but we do not have the police, nor do we have our own IPS or IAS cadre. So what kind of government is this?”
So the NC government would not want PRI elections to be held only for the elected representatives “to later be ignored, denied respect and not even recognised by the officers,” he told reporters while responding to a question about BJP charging the NC-led government of deliberately delaying the elections to panchayat and urban local bodies.
“We have never said we do not want elections. We have said, give us statehood. They (BJP leadership) tell us it will be given at an appropriate time,” Choudhary said.
Earlier, the government had said the process to hold local bodies’ elections was underway, and polls would be conducted after the completion of administrative formalities such as voter lists, reservations, and delimitation.
“Today, if we make someone a sarpanch or a DDC (district development council) member, would the officers actually listen to them.
“What is the point of holding such elections,” he asked, adding that the people wanted genuine and meaningful elections, not merely symbolic elections.
Choudhary was speaking to reporters after conducting a surprise inspection of a government hospital here.
… terms ED case against his brother ‘selective targeting’
Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary on Saturday defended his brother, suspended police officer Vijay Choudhary, in the Enforcement Directorate’s case and termed it “selective targeting.”
“My brother is someone who has fought against militancy and has survived militant attacks,” he said.
Choudhary said that despite his brother’s service for which he should have been rewarded, he was being targeted, and warned that the files would one day be opened and those responsible would have to answer.
The deputy chief minister asserted that he would not be intimidated by the filing of a case against his brother, adding that “every oppression has an end.”
Choudhary, however, said any matter concerning his family should be decided by the judiciary rather than being debated by him in public.
“I would rather leave it to the investigating agencies and the court. I have complete faith in my judiciary,” Choudhary told reporters on the sidelines of his inspection of a government hospital here.
The ED has booked Vijay under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), while an FIR has already been registered against him by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB). The case relates to allegations of managing dozens of assets through benami transactions and money laundering.
The deputy chief minister also criticised the functioning of the BJP and said the party seeks Muslim votes during elections but resorts to “Hindu-Muslim politics” once elections are over, calling it “unfortunate” for Jammu and Kashmir and the country.
He also said there had been significant improvement in hospital management after the formation of the NC-led government, stressing the need to treat doctors and paramedical staff properly and urging people to remain vigilant about these issues. (PTI)
