Farooq Abdullah backed Congress’ letter to PM seeking J&K statehood, while INDIA bloc plans to raise the issue on July 19. Congress to stage protests in Srinagar, Jammu, and Delhi.
SRINAGAR — As the monsoon session of Parliament starts on July 21, the National Conference and Congress have intensified their push for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood. While NC president Farooq Abdullah asserted that statehood is the rightful entitlement of the people, the Congress is gearing up for protests in Srinagar, Jammu and Delhi to pressure the Centre into fulfilling the demand.
“I want to congratulate Congress president Kharge and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for raising the issue of statehood with Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” Abdullah told reporters on Friday.
He was referring to a letter written by Kharge and Rahul to the PM seeking restoration of statehood to J&K during the forthcoming monsoon session of Parliament, TNIE reported.
In response to a question, Abdullah said why statehood to J&K cannot be restored. “It is our right. It is not any favour”.
The NC president disclosed that on July 19 evening, a meeting of (India bloc) leaders will be held and the statehood issue will be discussed.
Another senior NC leader and minister Javed Rana said they want statehood to be restored to J&K.
The Supreme Court has directed GoI, the country’s leadership including PM and HM had promised before elections that there would be delimitation, elections and later statehood would be restored. The delimitation and Assembly election have taken place and now they should restore the statehood.
In response to a question, Rana said, “We want full-fledged statehood. When the state is restored, all these issues (including law and order) will be with us,”.
With an eye on the monsoon session, Congress too has upped the ante for restoration of statehood. “We will be holding protests Kashmir, Jammu and Delhi,” senior J&K Congress leader G A Mir said.
He said the party leaders and workers would march towards Divisional Commissioner Kashmir’s office on Saturday (July 19) and submit a memorandum to Div Com for onward submission to J&K Lt Governor.
“On July 20, we will stage a protest in Jammu and submit a memorandum to Div Com Jammu for its onward submission to LG,” Mir said.
The Congress leader said the party has also called for a “Delhi Chalo” programme on July 21 and the party leaders would march towards parliament on July 22.
“We will stage a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on July 22 to press for full fledged restoration of statehood to J&K,” Mir said.
Congress, which contested the Assembly polls in alliance with NC, has decided not to join the Omar Abdullah government till statehood to J&K was restored.
J&K Congress chief spokesman Ravindra Sharma said the party wants restoration of full statehood so that rights of locations on land, jobs and local resources are protected.
Alleging that J&K people were punished by downgrading and converting erstwhile J&K state into a UT, he said central leaders have been making promises about restoration of statehood. “They have given an affidavit in SC and despite that statehood has not been restored yet”.
Referring to the dual power system in J&K, Sharma said, “There is an elected government in J&K but you saw how the mandate was insulted by the treatment meted out to the Chief Minister recently”.
He was referring to policemen physically manhandling CM at Martyrs graveyard on Martyrs Day and CM having to scale the boundary wall to go inside the graveyard to pay homage to July 13, 1931 martyrs.
Meanwhile, jailed J&K MP Sheikh Rashid alias Er Rashid would be moving a resolution in parliament for restoration of statehood to J&K, his party said.
Awami Ittihad Party (AIP) chief spokesperson Inam Un Nabi said the party president and jailed Lok Sabha MP from Baramulla Er Rashid will bring a resolution in the upcoming Parliament session demanding the restoration of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.
The monsoon session of parliament begins on July 21 (Monday).
“The demand for statehood is not a favour but a constitutional right that was unilaterally taken away in 2019. It is time Parliament corrects this historic wrong. Er Rashid’s resolution is a reflection of people’s yearning for dignity, democratic rights and self-respect,” Inam said.
