SRINAGAR: Leader of Opposition Sunil Kumar Sharma on Monday accused the Abdullah family of being responsible for what he described as the country’s biggest case of electoral malpractice, citing the alleged rigging of the 1987 Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections.
Speaking to reporters, Sharma said the Abdullah family should first address the allegations surrounding the 1987 elections, in which Farooq Abdullah became Chief Minister.
“If allegation of vote chori is to be put on someone, it is on the 1987 rigging. When Farooq Abdullah was made Chief Minister after stealing votes,” he said.
Describing the 1987 elections as an example of electoral malpractice with wider implications, Sharma said the episode remained a major allegation against the Abdullah family.
He also claimed that elections in Jammu and Kashmir were conducted fairly only during the tenures of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He accused the Congress of having a history of electoral malpractice in the region.
Targeting the Congress, Sharma alleged that a deputy commissioner named Khaliq had a role in determining who became an MLA in Jammu and Kashmir.
“There was a Khaliq DC here. Those MLAs were called ‘Khaliq-made MLAs’,” he said.
