Accusing the Saffron leadership of issuing vague, contradictory statements over J&K day in and day out, the JKNPP Chairman and former Minister Harsh Dev Singh today said that the BJP led govt. seemed to have lost track over J&K. He said that conflicting stands taken by its leadership has only made confusion worse confounded in J&K after its division into two Union Territories. He was addressing a press conference in Jammu today.
“When Lt. Governor assumed his charge in J&K, he had made a statement that Assembly elections would be held soon in the new UT. There was however, no follow up action. The BJP State leaders stated that Delimitation would be held, immediately after the State Reorganization. It also met the same fate. The BJP announced to enact ‘Domicile Law’ post 370 abrogation. But the Union MoS Home made a statement in the Parliament that there was no proposal with the govt. to enact any such law to save lands and jobs of locals. But recently the BJP leadership has again started talking of early enactment of such legislation. The Lt. Governor’s statement of early Assembly elections was subsequently followed by announcements of early holding of by-elections for Panchayati Raj so as to fill the vacancies of Sarpanches and Panches. And now an altogether new proposition has been mooted for early elections of District Planning and Development Boards (DPDBs). Today’s announcement has also amused the public as to how the elections to DPDBs could be held without MLAs who have to vote for electing the Chairmen of such Boards. And neither have the amendments been made in the J&K Panchayat Raj Act which still provides for filling up the post of Chairmen of DPDBs by nomination” asserted Singh.
Charging the govt. with policy paralysis over J&K, Mr. Singh said casual statements over important issues had only created cynicism because of the frequency with which they were made and then forgotten. He said that the Govt. should immediately announce Assembly elections in J&K so as to retrieve the situation and to bring normalcy in the new UT.
“An elected popular govt. alone was the panacea for many of the ills afflicting the system in the new set up. The outside bureaucrats who had hardly any knowledge about the peculiar features of the State, its varied culture, topography, history, language, geography and other distinguishing traits could not be the substitute for a legitimate elected government”. They could only add to the prevailing confusion and instability said Singh while urging up the centre to hand over the reins of power to the people of J&K who had been wrongfully deprived of their democratic and other Constitutional guarantees.
Mr. Gagan Pratap Singh, State Secretary, Mr. Parshotam Parihar, State Secretary-PTU, Mr. Surinder Chouhan, District President, Jammu Rural-JKNPP, Abdul Rashid Wani, Tehsil Presdent Basantgarh-JKNPP & Mohd. Tariq Wani were also present in the press conference.