SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) President Omar Abdullah, on Monday expressed concern about the detrimental impact of the Double Engine Government’s policies on the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
While addressing a mega workers convention at Nowshera, Jammu, Omar expressed surprise at the central government’s policies vis a vis Jammu and Kashmir. “Since 1990, I have never witnessed a central government that is so uninterested in fostering democracy in Jammu and Kashmir. Previous governments, such as Gowda’s, Gujral’s, Vajpayee’s, and Manmohan Singh’s, have consistently made efforts to support the establishment of a democratic system in the region. However, the current government appears to have no interest in establishing a democratically elected setup in Jammu and Kashmir. This neglect has resulted in the people of the region being plunged into an abyss of suffering and despair.”
Inquiring as to why democracy was prohibited in Jammu and Kashmir, Omar pointed out that while elections to assemblies are held in other parts of the nation once the terms of Panchayats and ULBs are over, there are no upcoming elections for these new bodies in Jammu and Kashmir.
“Our assembly’s tenure expired in 2018, and as 2023 draws to a close, there are no signs that democracy will return. Why are we not allowed to have a government that has been duly elected? Is this as a result of the J&K people maintaining the flame of Hindu-Muslim unity? Is this a result of our strong adherence to secularism’s ideals? There are attempts to instill a
Taking a swipe at the government, Omar said that the so-called double engine government has pushed the people into a bottomless abyss of morass and miseries. “Skyrocketing inflation, soaring unemployment, ration shortage and exorbitant hike in tariffs have pushed the people to wall.”
The convention was organized by Central Secretary Surinder Choudhary. Among others Party General Secretary Ali Muhammad Sagar, Additional General Secretary Ajay Sadhotra, Senior Leader Mian Altaf Ahmed, Provincial Presidents Jammu Rattan Lal Gupta, Nasir Aslam Wani Sogami also addressed the convention. Pir Panchal Zone President Javed Rana, Provincial Youth President Ajaz Jan, DDC Chairman Rajouri Chaudhary Naseem Liaquat, Additional Spokesperson Yashvardhan Singh, party leaders Th Rameshwar Singh, Ashok Sharma, Mohammad Sadiq, Rakesh Singh Raka, Harsh Vardhan Singh , Waqar Mir, Cap Moti Ram, Rathan Singh, Rohit Kohli, Charanjeet Singh, Sunita Devi, Waqar Mir, Ashok Sharma, Vivek Sharma were also present.
