KL Report
SRINAGAR
Senior Congress leader and minister for tourism Ghulam Ahmad Mir on Friday said Congress party workers in the state are of the opinion that the party should fight forth coming parliamentary elections independently and not forge a pre poll alliance with any regional party in the state.
Talking to Kashmir News Service (KNS), the minister for tourism said: “There is a general feeling among our workers who have a pressing demand that the party should get its share in parliamentary seats of Kashmir valley. Our Panchs and Sarpanchs want Congress should lead and have representation in Kashmir. I also as a Congress worker demand the same keeping in view the bitter experience we had in Ladakh last time. In Ladakh we got an official mandate but a dummy candidate was fielded and he was owned after the results came out and he is now counted as an NC MP. We want that episode should not a ripple effect. If at all there is an alliance, we will surely press for one Parliamentary seat in Kashmir valley.”
Claiming that Congress will be emerge as the single largest party in forth coming assembly elections in the state, Mir told KNS that the party has gained tremendous popularity among people and that will surely benefit it in the coming elections.
“There is no lobbyism in Congress in the state. Yes differences of opinion can be there but it is for the first time our party is moving in a unified direction. Workers who are the backbone of our party give their opinion which goes to party high command in Delhi and if our High Command decides to go for a pre-poll alliance then definitely we should be given a seat out of three parliamentary constituencies in Kashmir valley,” Mir told KNS.
Substantiating his claim, Mir observed that presently there is a Congress current in Kashmir valley. “Its’ background, I think is that people have now become politically mature in Kashmir. Both the regional parties here depend on the central government for its budgetary support so people in Kashmir now think why not to have a direct relation with the centre,” the minister for tourism observed.
He added: “In this kind of an atmosphere, the Congress has become a natural choice for them. Second Ghulam Nabi Azad did some remarkable work introduced a work culture, development and quality of work in a brief tenure as the chief minister of the state. Prof Soz being a gentleman, honest, dedicated did a lot of work for the party. He visited across the Valley met people and tried out to address their problems. Prof Soz also tried to reach out the sofar neglected sections like artisan, workers, labour class and the youth. Our membership has increased tremendously. These all factors will have appositive impact for our party in the coming elections,” Mir told KNS.
