KATHUA: Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) president Tariq Hameed Karra on Wednesday accused the BJP of maintaining silence on the restoration of statehood and questioned its recent protests over public issues.
Addressing Congress workers at Kathua during a programme organised to felicitate newly appointed office-bearers of the District Congress Committee (DCC) and Block Congress Committees (BCCs), Karra said the BJP had committed to restoring statehood after the Assembly elections but had not fulfilled the promise despite more than two years of an elected government being in place.
Karra also questioned the BJP legislators and other senior party leaders from Jammu and Kashmir over what he described as their silence on the issue. He said the BJP’s recent protests over public issues raised questions about its performance during what he termed the “double-engine” governments at the Centre and in the erstwhile state and Union Territory.
He alleged that promises made to the youth at the time of the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in 2019 had not been fulfilled. He cited unemployment, paper leaks and alleged recruitment irregularities as issues facing the youth and said the Congress would seek accountability from the government.
Karra also said the absence of statehood had left people “sandwiched” between two centres of power and held the Centre and BJP responsible for the situation.
Working president Raman Bhalla said the party had undertaken organisational changes at the grassroots level and would work to strengthen its structure. He also criticised the BJP over issues including paper leaks and alleged irregularities in political funding.
Former MP Ch Lal Singh accused the BJP of having downgraded the erstwhile Dogra state and alleged that the rights and interests of people over land, forests and employment were being undermined. He said the Congress would continue to raise issues concerning the region’s identity and status.
Former MLA Dr Manohar Lal Sharma also criticised the BJP over the delay in restoring statehood, while alleging that unemployment and rising prices were affecting people.
The programme was organised by DCC Kathua, headed by its president Pankaj Dogra. Congress leaders, former legislators and party functionaries from the district attended the event.
The party also expressed support for Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and his stated campaign on issues concerning youth and students.
