Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference on Sunday stated that the emphatic win of Dr Farooq Abdullah led PAGD has been very rewarding for the furtherance of democracy in Jammu and Kashmir, saying the ongoing infringement of constitutionally guaranteed and other democratic rights of people is not compatible with the idea of India.
While appreciating the conviction of people in democratic process, Party’s Additional General Secretary Dr. Sheikh Mustafa Kamal said, “It was very elevating for us to see people galvanize on their own notwithstanding immense pressures and pull and cast their votes in the recently concluded DDC elections. While the leaders were undergoing incarceration at in-house and out-house centers, people took it upon them to protect the frail democracy planted and watered by the sacrifices’ of innumerable NC leaders and workers in a widespread crackdown overseen by the ruling BJP. People’s overwhelming response for NC should in no case be seen in isolation; it was illustrative of the immense labour and sacrifice that our party rendered since 1996 braving all odds. Far from leveraging on the changed ground situation, the BJP, on the contrary tried its best to discredit local political leaders and also tried its level best to derail J&K from Democratic path, but the people didn’t let them triumph in their despicable plans. People came out and supported Dr Farooq Abdullah led PAGD,” he said.
Remarking on the ongoing situation in Jammu and Kashmir, Kamal said that the people of J&K had made it clear to the ruling BJP that there could be no trade off between their political aspirations and development. Ruling BJP at New Delhi, he said on the contrary has been trying to change the gear of local politics by supplanting its stooges. “Throttling democracy, doing away with an empowered legislature, and caging of political leaders has put the very supreme interests of the country at stake. The political void that has been created cannot be filled by having local body elections. In reality what is at stake is the definition of democracy. Genuine democracies require that the people of Jammu and Kashmir be granted institutional protection to protect their voices from being swamped. It was the wide-ranging constitutional guarantees under art 370, 35-A that ensured it. Unfortunately the August 5th move of ruling BJP overlooked such expediency, and the successive orders and notifications were also bereft of any provision for demographic protection, vibrant democracy, and protection of cultural, educational, employment, and land rights of locals. This reveals it all. One most galling aspect of August policy has been the dwindling number of natives of J&K from decision making bodies,” he said.
He said unless the political aspirations of the people of J&K were not addressed, the so-called development activity, if there was any, wouldn’t yield anticipated results. “People have revealed their detestation for August 5, 2019 measures democratically in recently concluded DDC polls, now it is for New Delhi to reciprocate and relate to their mandate,” he added.
