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EC assured us of early elections in Jammu and Kashmir: Farooq Abdullah
A delegation of national and regional leaders from Jammu and Kashmir, led by National Conference president Farooq Abdullah , signed a memorandum and submitted it to the CEC on Thursday at Delhi.
Former chief minister and National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Thursday said Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) of India Rajiv Kumar and another member have assured assembly elections in J&K ‘soon’.
A delegation of national and regional leaders from Jammu and Kashmir, led by Dr Abdullah, signed a memorandum and submitted it to the CEC on Thursday at Delhi.
“All leaders from Jammu and Kashmir were with us. We met national leaders and then the chief election commissioner and another member. We submitted a memorandum to them, which was duly signed by national leaders and regional leaders,” said Dr Abdullah.
“We requested them to hold assembly elections. We asked them why was there a delay in holding elections when the delimitation exercise has been completed and the home minister and others are claiming that normalcy has returned to J&K,” added Dr Abdullah
The former chief minister and sitting Lok Sabha member further informed that the CEC assured to hold elections soon.
When asked whether the CEC gave a timeline, he said, “The (CEC) said soon, which means this year itself. Now, the three members will decide about the timeline.”
It may be stated here that Jammu and Kashmir has no elected government since June 19, 2018, when PDP-BJP government witnessed an unceremonious fall after the latter pulled out of the combine citing worsening security scenario in the region.
The signatories to the memorandum were Dr Abdullah, Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge, CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, NCP chief Sharad Pawar, Awami National Conference leader Muzaffar Shah, PDP general secretary Amreek Singh Reen, MP TR Baalu, RJD’s MP Prof Manoj Kumar Jha, Panthers Party leader and former education minister of J&K, Harsh Dev Singh, AAP leader Taranjit Singh Tony, former minister and president of Dogra Sadar Sabha, Gulchain Singh Charak, NC leader justice Hasnain Masoodi (retd) and other senior leaders of national and regional political parties.
The memorandum read that Jammu and Kashmir was without a legislative assembly and an elected government for last nearly five years.
“In disregard of the letter and spirit of the Constitution, an unrepresentative and unaccountable bureaucracy is allowed to run the government to the discomfort and inconvenience of the general public,” it reads.
It further reads, “Panchayat elections and elections to other PRIs cannot be substitute to legislative assembly elections and the government and for that matter the ECI cannot avoid and delay assembly elections on that ground. “Had it been so, there would be no need to conduct assembly elections in states, that the ECI is with due dispatch and punctuality, as is evident from the recently held assembly elections in Meghalaya, Tripura and Nagaland and the elections scheduled to be held in Karnataka.”
It reads, “The Election Commission of India is under a constitutional obligation to hold assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir and delay in and denial of assembly elections would amount to denial of fundamental and democratic rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir and a breach of constitutional obligations”.
“We however reiterate that the assembly election would be first and important step towards restoration of all the constitutional rights guaranteed in the constitution of India and fulfillment of political aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” it stated further.
NC Lok Sabha member from Anantnag, Hasnain Masoodi, who was part of delegation that met ECI, “Though the election commissioner of India didn’t give any specific dates on when elections will be held, we are hopeful this meeting will bear fruits.”
The last assembly elections in J&K were held in 2014 when PDP emerged the single largest party. Later, PDP formed a coalition government with the BJP, however, in 2018, BJP withdrew its support and the state came under the Governor’s rule. On August 5, 2019, the Centre revoked Article 370 and 35 A and bifurcated J&K into two UTs. Though the Central government had promised elections after delimitation exercise, the parties are still waiting for elections.
Former J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah told reporters in Srinagar that the All Party meeting was held in Jammu last week where it was decided that leaders will meet ECI to ask them why elections are not held in J&K. “Our last assembly elections in J&K were held in 2014. This is the longest period when J&K hasn’t held assembly elections. The leaders will meet ECI to ask them why people of J&K have been deprived of the elected government which is our right.”
(With inputs from Mir Ehsan in Srinagar)
