Srinagar
Jammu and Kashmir National Conference on Thursday rejected the assertions of BJP General Secretary Ram Madhav as hogwash and a shameless attempt to conceal the failures of BJP led central government in Jammu & Kashmir.
In a joint statement issued from party headquarters, Party General Secretary Haji Ali Muhammad Sagar, Senior leader Chowdhary Mohammad Ramzan and State Secretary Sakina Itoo said that the assertions of Ram Madhav have not come as a surprise. “BJP has been lying to the whole country and they continue to do so here in our state as well. What is there to celebrate about the recent ULB polls? Out of 598 wards in the valley, no one filled nomination papers for 181 wards and 231 wards are such where the contestants got elected unopposed,” they said adding, “It was during Omar Abdullah led government that the state witnessed a poll percentage of over 80 percent in the 2011 Panchayat elections.”
The party leaders said that BJP in desperation is downplaying the figures of ULB elections. “It is shocking how BJP is trying to justify the record low turnout in these elections. Rather than accepting the follies, they are cheering because BJP won few wards in the valley. Such brazen display of arrogance is destined to fall flat on the ground.”
They said that that the recently concluded ULB elections turned to be a damp squib where among other things a particular candidate declared himself winner even before the counting was held. “The process was mired with controversies from day first. It is for the first time that the names of candidates were withheld by the election commission. People had no idea who they were voting for or where the polling booths were located,” they said.
Reacting to the acquisition of family rule, the General Secretary said that none of our leaders are being selected or superimposed on people of the state. “The pet blame of BJP stands no ground. Our leadership has occupied not through any kind of a coup but all of them were democratically elected by the people of the state.”
The leaders maintained that national conference didn’t participate in the ULB elections because of the ambiguous stand of state and the central government on Art 35 A in SC.
Rejecting the allegation of Ram Madhav blaming NC of creating fear psychosis, the leaders said, “It is National Conference who has suffered in the last three decades where hundreds of our party workers and leaders have fallen to bullets. Two of our party functionaries were killed during the recently concluded elections and the government is still clue less about who the culprits are.”
The leaders maintained that state’s own Panchayat Raj Act is far more democratic, egalitarian and participatory that the central laws. “Our party has a history of involving masses with decision making. We have to our credit the single line administration, district development boards, JKRTI Act, the state’s Panchayat Raj Act. They are just a few feathers in our cap.”
