Srinagar
National conference vice president and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday said had his party and former J&K chief minister Farooq Abdullah not contested 1996 election in the state then the notorious militant-turned renegade Kuka Parray would have been chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir.
“Nobody can deny this or even I can’t prove it, this is my belief that if Farooq Sahab and NC would not have contested 1996 elections then Kuka Parray would have been J&K CM. Whether anybody accepts this or not it is up to them,” Omar said during a rally at Chawalgam, Kulgam.
“Governor (SP Malik) Sahab’s job is not to interfere in the politics here. Politics is our job. The sole responsibility of the Governor and his administration is to make the situation favourable to conduct elections so that people will once again take part in the election process,” said Omar.
He said that it is for former IAS officer Shah Faesal to decide where he wants to go now after quitting his job.
“It’s his choice now where to go. If he wants to join NC then definitely we will discuss it. As Shah Faesal has quit his service for the people of Kashmir, now it is he who has to decide how to work for the people,” he said.
He hoped that south Kashmir would give his party another chance in the next assembly elections. He said that it needed to be understood what was forcing youth to take to militancy.
Omar said that coalition governments in J&K has proved detrimental to state’s interests and that the need of the hour is to have a strong, single mandated government to carry forward the agenda of peace, development and reconciliation.
“It augments well for a state like that of ours to have a strong mandated government, which has an ideologically defined position, and a vested interest in protecting state’s position and giving honest governance,” he added.
“A decisive leadership is what will salvage the state from tumultuous times, and guard the special position against the onslaught of those who are contriving hard to destroy it,” he said.
Omar asserted, “People bear testimony as to how PDP bared all insults of BJP bald-facedly for the sake of power. People do remember how PM Narender Modi publically rebuffed Late Mufti Syed by retorting in strong words, ‘On Kashmir, I don’t need any ones advice or analyses’. However, PDP owing to its penchant and enchantment for power tossed down the earth-shattering insult patiently.”
“Given the fact she had to made a plethora of compromises, she should be the last person to speak in favor of coalition,” he said.
Omar maintained that coalition governments have proven indecisive and frail towards rising up to the aspirations of people. “The former PDP-BJP government was no different. Perhaps the amount of anarchy that prevailed in the former BJP-PDP led government was much higher however the lust for power kept them together for a while,” he said adding after having two unsuccessful coalitions to her credit Mehbooba ji is cheekily vouching for the same.
“Her last coalition misadventure was again proved detrimental for the state. She however stuck to it ingesting all insults to save her chair,” he said.
Omar said the kind of havoc that Muftis bequeathed the state while in government with BJP is alive in the explicit memories of people. “This time the people of the state should make it a point to have a strong mandated government in place that could undo the imprudent policies of former BJP-PDP government,” adding that the wave which PDP and BJP kept harping on in 2014 turned out to be a tsunami for the people of the state.
Omar said that a decisive leadership is what will salvage the state from tumultuous times, and guard the special position. “Our state is beset with issues like the attack on its identity, development deficit and non-existence of any reconciliation and rapprochement policy.
The special needs of the state necessitate for a strong government that could satiate the aspirations of the people of the state,” he said.
Omar impressed on the party functionaries and workers to work tirelessly towards having a strong government of National Conference. “Only National Conference boasts a panacea for state’s problems. We have a developmental road map in shape of ‘Naya Kashmir’ that espouses an idea of inclusive growth. We have a political road map, and the party has already submitted the Autonomy document to the government of India. Our party has the sincerity of thought, history of sacrifice and the vitality to stand for the interests of the state,” he said adding that with the active participation of people we will be able to achieve our anticipated goals.
Omar questioned Mehbooba Mufti for visiting militant families said as Chief Minister she could have done more for such families, but at that time she completely forgot them.
“She could have done good for these families, when she was heading a government. She had good relations with Prime Minister. She was calling Defence Minister on phone and was also heading a powerful Unified Command,” he said.
He said Mehbooba had power, then she didn’t visit the families of militants. “Now when she has nothing with her, even her party is in shambles. She is visiting these families,” said Omar.
“I don’t have problems why she is visiting their families. I have a problem why did she not visit them when she was in power,” he said.
Criticising the governor for his remark that there is no ‘Operation All-out’ in Kashmir, Omar said people are now confused as “on one hand we listen to (words like) operation all out from the army and on another, we hear from the Governor that there was no such operation.”
“We will never support such operation where the people will suffer the most. The crackdowns, killings or excesses, whatever you will name them, even then also we won’t support such operations,” said Omar during a rally in Kulgam.
Among others party general secretary Haji Ali Muhammad Sagar, State Secretary Sakina Ittoo, South Zone President Dr. Bashir Ahmad Veeri, District President Kulgam Abdul Majeed Bhat Larmi, Political Advisor to VP Tanvir Sadiq, Provincial Spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar, Peer Muhammad Hussain, Muhammad Shafi, Abdul Rahman Tantray, Ishtiyaq Ganaie were also present on the occasion.
