E-Paper
BJP ready fro assembly polls in J&K: Party president
Raina said its job of the Election Commission of India to hold elections in J&K. “The decision to hold polls is been decided by ECI, not by any party, President or Prime Minister
Days after former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah said Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is afraid of holding assembly elections in the UT, BJP state president Ravinder Raina on Saturday said his party is ready for both assembly and parliament elections in the region.
Raina said its job of the Election Commission of India (ECI) to hold elections in J&K. “The decision to hold polls is been decided by ECI, not by any party, President or Prime Minister. We request the ECI to hold elections in J&K. BJP is ready for both assembly and parliament elections,” he added.
The BJP state president said even Abdullah is well aware that dates for any elections is to be decided by the ECI.
Former J&K chief minister and National Conference vice president Abdullah on Wednesday had challenged the BJP to hold assembly elections in J&K along with the next year’s Lok Sabha polls.
Omar had claimed that if assembly elections are held, BJP will face “worst defeat” in both Kashmir and Jammu divisions. “If BJP would have been strong enough to win the assembly elections, then they would have conducted polls in J&K long back,” Omar told media persons.
He said that the BJP is “afraid” of assembly elections. “If they (BJP) have courage then the assembly elections in J&K should be held along with Parliament elections. They have to hold Parliamentary elections and if these polls can be held in J&K why not assembly elections.”
Almost all the political parties in J&K have been asking for holding elections in the UT. Even a delegation of J&K leaders led by NC president Farooq Abdullah met Chief Election Commissioner of India in New Delhi in March and requested him to hold assembly elections in the UT.
The last assembly elections in J&K were held in 2014 and assembly couldn’t complete its term and then J&K came under governor’s rule after BJP withdrew its support from PDP-BJP coalition government in 2018. After the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, Union home minister Amit Shah had promised assembly polls after completion of delimitation exercise, however still assembly elections are not in sight as government is now planning to hold panchayat and urban local bodies polls by the end of this year in the UT.
