Jammu Tawi, Jul 12: Leader of Opposition in Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Sunil Sharma on Sunday accused the National Conference of using the demand for restoration of statehood to shift the political narrative away from governance issues.
He also claimed that the unrest within the ruling party in Jammu and Kashmir stemmed from internal differences and opposition to dynastic politics rather than any effort by the BJP to destabilise the government.
“In fact, I would say that their MLAs are ready to switch sides on their own because they oppose dynastic politics. We are not buying anyone, nor do we need to, especially when we have already decided not to form the government,” Sharma told PTI.
Referring to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah’s remarks at a public rally in Jammu, he said the BJP has never asked anyone not to seek statehood for Jammu and Kashmir.
“The National Conference government is using the statehood issue to conceal its failure to fulfil promises made to the people,” Sharma said.
He said it is extremely unfortunate that a chief minister occupying such a high constitutional office is making “irresponsible and immature” statements.
“Rather than acknowledging his government’s failures, he wants to distract the public and turn the statehood issue into a diversion, much like a ‘Jantar Mantar’ trick, so that the real issues are not debated. I believe this is the greatest misfortune for Jammu and Kashmir,” the BJP leader said, adding that the real debate should be on the promises made to the people and why they remain unfulfilled.
Rejecting allegations that the BJP was attempting to destabilise the National Conference-led government, Sharma said his party had no intention of forming the government and therefore had no reason to engineer its fall.
“We have already made it clear that the BJP is not interested in forming the government. If we are not going to form the government, why would we try to bring it down? They are facing their own internal problems,” the LoP said.
He claimed that the real conflict is within the National Conference, as the internal battle against dynastic politics has already begun. “The party is effectively fractured because of opposition to family rule.” Dismissing as baseless Abdullah’s allegation that the BJP was trying to lure his legislators with offers of Rs 20-30 crore, Sharma challenged him to substantiate the claim.
“If the chief minister has evidence, he should publicly name the individuals involved and specify where and when such offers were made. Otherwise, he should be prepared to face legal consequences,” Sharma said.
