KL Report
SRINAGAR
PDP has a positive agenda which was backed by its performance in the government and in the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) President Mehbooba Mufti has said that her party has introduced real competition into the democratic structure of the state without which the democracy lacked credibility and substance.
As per a statement Mehbooba was addressing the party workers convention at Bandipora today where she has said “The party after its formation in 1999 has maintained consistency in its agenda and while in government it delivered more than any other government has done in past more than six decades. By the conduct our party has not just rescued democracy but has provided people with a viable alternative which has already made a difference to political and development scenario of the state.” And added that in future elections people will have a clear choice and would not suffer for lack of options as in the past.
Mehbooba has said, “The oldest party of the state which had a monopoly over everything has now been fully exposed and discarded by the majority of people. Its tumbling fortunes from two third majority to 28 and its complete dependence on other parties is an indication that the party is reaching end of its road.”
The PDP president also recalled that in an apparent shift of its traditionally emotive agenda in 2008 Omar Abdullah’s NC went to the people seeking votes not to anything but governance and development, it promised ‘roads, water, free power, subsidized gas and above all jobs’ to all making it clear that was neither competent nor expected to resolve the larger political issues. But after remaining in government for five years the Chief Minister has expressed ‘helplessness’ on almost every issue concerning governance whether it is the security of an ordinary citizen or supplying electricity to consumers. She has said, “Issues like unemployment have not been addressed at all and the government is focused only in distributing few government jobs to its favorites through the back door. On the one hand it is throwing out the daily wagers, casual labours, seasonal workers and NYC volunteers who have worked for many years on the pretext of lack of funds but on the other hand hundreds of retired people have been reemployed on fat salaries.”
She has also said that the tendency to extend service of retired persons or their reemployment blocks the career prospectus of hundreds of officials who would have in normal course got their promotions up the official hierarchy. This she said has been one reason for demoralization in the services as younger officers get stagnated while top posts are occupied by retired people.
Mehbooba has said, “The people have now become aware that NC has always used Kashmir issue to divert attention from its failures and challenged Omar Abdullah to show if he had been able to take one concrete step during the last five years towards finding a solution to political problems. Instead he has used draconian laws to silence those who are making demand for resolution.”
Mehbooba has also said, “The institution like Auqaf after their take over by the government from the Sheikh family had been able to establish two full-fledged universities apart from introducing measures like providing free rations to destitute, limbs to disabled and ambulances to major shrines for community service. Nursing college which offers graduation course anywhere in the state was established by waqaf board in Srinagar.” She has said the present government however ‘subverted’ this institution of Muslims also and packed it with almost the same members who constituted the earlier Muslim Auqaf Trust under Abdullah family. “No wonder that the waqaf board is now in news only for back door entries, illegal sale of graveyards, and offenses like the theft of construction material from holy places like the Hazrathbal shrine.”
