SRINAGAR, Oct 27: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said his hopes for restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir were fading as the issue drags on.
While interacting with reporters here, he was asked about his next step if statehood was not restored. To this, Abdullah said, “Let’s get to that point first. We will talk then.” The chief minister refused to comment on a report which claimed that he would resign if statehood was not restored to Jammu and Kashmir within a finite timeline.
“I am not going to say anything about that. I have nothing more to say on that. The interviewer tried to ask me questions about that. If I did not answer her, what makes you think that I will answer you?” he added.
Abdullah said, “I was hopeful (about statehood restoration) from day one, but that hope is diminishing. But the longer this issue drags on, the hopes will fade. The longer you make us wait, the less hopeful we will be.” The chief minister, however, said he was still hopeful that statehood would be restored to Jammu and Kashmir. “There still is some hopefulness there. If it happens within this hopefulness, it will be better,” he said.
In response to a question, he said that if there were no obstacles in governance in a Union Territory set up, every state would be asking for it.
“If there were no obstacles in governance in a UT set up, am I mad to seek statehood? If it were easy in a UT, then all states would have sought to be a UT.
“There are issues which come to the fore. The department is under me, and I have to answer before the House, but the officer in the department is not of my choice. There are many examples. There are several institutions which should have been under the control of the elected government, but are still not with us,” the chief minister said.
Abdullah said he wanted the issue of statehood to be discussed in the assembly, as it would have revealed where the 28 MLAs of the BJP stood on this.
“We wanted to talk about it. But it seems that the Speaker has put a bar on it. I had no problem talking about it, as one MLA had tried to bring a resolution on statehood. We wanted statehood to be discussed, but the Speaker is the custodian of the House.
“I know where I stand on the statehood issue; if a resolution for restoration of statehood comes, I know which way we will vote. But we have a party with 28 MLAs about which we have no idea what they think about statehood. They sought votes on statehood, but the Centre did not restore it,” he said.
The chief minister said the business rules of the Union Territory government were pending approval of the Centre.
“A couple of rounds of discussions have taken place between our officers and the Centre. They have raised some questions, but we told them that the business rules we have sent are under the JK Reorganisation Act. We have not gone out of the Act; these rules should be approved,” he said.
On slapping the Public Safety Act (PSA) on AAP MLA Mehraj Malik, Abdullah said it was unjustified.
“I still maintain that whatever Mehraj Malik did it did not warrant a PSA. We have a Union minister who branded the entire Muslim community disloyal. If he got away with it, what wrong did Mehraj Malik do?” the chief minister asked.
Abdullah also lamented that the Speaker has opined that no sub-judice matter can be discussed in the assembly. “The unfortunate part is that if every sub-judice matter cannot be discussed in the assembly, people will rush to courts so that we cannot talk on any issue in the assembly,” he said.
The chief minister lashed out at the BJP MLAs for suggesting that his government was ignoring flood-affected areas of Jammu, as the majority there was of the Hindu faith.
“The BJP is under the wrong impression that we govern like they do. It is the BJP that has kept 15 per cent of the population out of the central government. BJP today has not a single Muslim member in the Lok Sabha or Rajya Sabha. They do not find a single Muslim fit enough to be a minister in the Central government.
“We will decide after assessing the losses, not on the basis of region or religion. We will seek a package as per losses, and as soon as we get the money, it will be distributed,” he added.
Asked about the Budgam bypolls, Abdullah admitted that internal politics in the party had increased the complexities there.
“Any bye-election is a challenge for a government. This challenge is multiplied by the complexities of the voter distribution in Budgam. It is also multiplied by some element of internal politics that is playing out. That said, I am hopeful that the people of Budgam will make the right choice,” he said. Without naming the estranged party MP Aga Ruhullah, a three-time former MLA from Budgam, Abdullah said if Budgam is less developed, those representing the constituency are responsible for it.
“People usually say the nearer Budgam is to Srinagar, the less its development has been. We want to correct that. Budgam has been represented, but it has not been developed. The people responsible for that are those who have represented Budgam for so many years. But, it is okay if they could not do it; we will do it,” he added.
On criticism of his government by Anatnag-Rajouri Lok Sabha member Mian Altaf Ahmad, the chief minister said he respected the advice of the veteran party colleague.
“I respect Altaf a lot. He is a senior leader of the NC. After reading his statement, I talked to him over the phone. He has said from the chair I am sitting on, I should make statements after thinking them through. My father also tells me the same. So, that way, there is no difference between my father and Mian sahib, and I see him as a father figure. He is my senior colleague; his advice is respected,” he said.
Asked about criticism by Ruhullah, Abdullah said he does not want to talk about him. “Who are you bringing on the same platform? There is a vast difference between the two (Mian Altaf and Ruhullah),” Abdullah added. (Agencies)
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