Mehbooba seeks inclusion of Art 370, political prisoners and Jamaat ban in agenda
Srinagar, July 18: The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said it will join the National Conference-led protest in Delhi on July 20 only if the restoration of Article 370, release of political prisoners and lifting of the ban on Jamaat-e-Islami are included in the agenda.
PDP president Mehbooba Mufti said the party, after deliberations, did not consider it appropriate to participate in a protest focused exclusively on the restoration of statehood.
“After careful consideration and deliberations with my senior colleagues, I have come to the conclusion that it would not be fit for us to participate in a protest whose raison d’être is solely and exclusively the demand for statehood,” she said in a letter to National Conference president Farooq Abdullah.
Mehbooba said the PDP would join the protest at Jantar Mantar only if the restoration of Article 370, release of political prisoners and lifting of the ban on Jamaat-e-Islami formed a central part of its agenda.
She argued that a protest focused solely on statehood could be seen as accepting the abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and as an endorsement of the events of August 5, 2019.
Farooq Abdullah has invited leaders from across Jammu and Kashmir’s political spectrum to join the National Conference-led protest at Jantar Mantar on the first day of the Monsoon Session of Parliament to press for restoration of statehood.
Mehbooba said reducing the political aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir to the demand for statehood alone would be an injustice. She said the mandate given to the National Conference was not merely for the restoration of statehood.
The PDP president also renewed her call for an all-party platform to address wider political and constitutional issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir. She urged Farooq Abdullah and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to take the lead in convening an all-party meeting, including representatives of civil society.
She said such a process should address issues including the release of political prisoners and the lifting of bans on socio-political organisations, including Jamaat-e-Islami.
Mehbooba further said the restoration of statehood could not be treated as a one-time event and would require sustained political engagement. She urged Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to initiate such an effort to address the concerns of what she described as a deeply disillusioned population.—Agencies
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Rashid Backs Statehood Protest
Announces hunger strike on July 20, barefoot march to Parliament
Srinagar, July 18: Jailed Baramulla MP and Awami Itihaad Party (AIP) chief Sheikh Rashid has backed the National Conference’s proposed July 20 protest for restoration of statehood, while accusing the party of diluting Jammu and Kashmir’s larger political aspirations.
In a message sent from Tihar Jail and read out at a press conference organised by the AIP here, Rashid said his party would support the protest in the larger interest of the people. However, he clarified that the move should not be seen as an endorsement of the National Conference’s “weak and diluted” political stand on various issues concerning Jammu and Kashmir.
Rashid announced that he would observe a day-long hunger strike on July 20 and undertake a barefoot march to Parliament on July 21 to seek a meaningful, time-bound and result-oriented dialogue between the Centre, elected representatives and other stakeholders of Jammu and Kashmir.
He alleged that the National Conference had failed to pursue the larger political aspirations of the people by restricting its demand to the restoration of statehood. According to him, the people of Jammu and Kashmir had not made sacrifices merely for statehood but for the restoration of all their legitimate political and constitutional rights.
The Rashid also criticised other regional parties, saying they too should explain what they had done for the restoration of statehood, Articles 370 and 35A instead of merely targeting the National Conference.
Reiterating his support for the July 20 protest, Rashid said the AIP remained committed to the restoration of the complete political and constitutional rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. He maintained that the party’s support for the protest should not be interpreted as an endorsement of the National Conference’s political line.
While welcoming the National Conference’s decision to hold a statehood protest, Un Nabi termed the move “too little, too late”, alleging that restricting the struggle to statehood alone ignored the larger political aspirations of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.—KNO
