Jammu, Nov 16: Accusing the government of undermining the grassroots democratic institutions by deferring polls, the J&K National Conference on Thursday said that the party in power, fearing defeat, has been relying on “unfounded alibis” to deny the people their right to exercise franchise for holding power.
According to a party statement, a meeting of Jammu District Urban JKNC was held at Sher-e-Kashmir Bhawan under the chairmanship of Chander Mohan Sharma, President Jammu District Urban. In the meeting, Ajay Kumar Sadhotra, Additional General Secretary of JKNC, Rattan Lal Gupta Provincial President JKNC, Sheikh Bashir Ahmed, Pardeep Bali, Ayub Malik, Abdul Gani Telil, Vijay Lochan, Satwant Kour Dogra, Harshvardhan Singh and Ankush Abrol were present.
Sadhotra said the people’s suffering under the present government as the “authoritative” dispensation is making decisions on its own without taking care of the people’s aspirations. “People never felt so bad under any regime as they feel today under the so-called Achhe Din Sarkar,” he said.
Rattan Lal Gupta, in his address, said there is a big difference between what the BJP government speaks and what it executes on the ground. “Saying that democracy is under siege under the incumbent government is in no way wrong because the population in J&K is feeling suffocated under the present proxy rule of the Central government in which there is no one to listen to the plight of the common man as directions have been broadcasted from New Delhi and implemented in J&K, with no say of people or even the local representatives including those belonging to the ruling party,” he said.
Gupta said the claims of distributing power among 30,000 people in J&K also seems to be a “hollow promise” as the tenure of elected representatives has ended and the incumbents have failed to restore democracy by not holding the elections.
Expressing shock and grief over the tragic incident, the NC leader said that the government should improve road infrastructure on the ground. “Such tragedies are testimony to the fact that a lot more has to be done to stop deaths on roads as people are struggling to cope with poor edifice and insensitive Babugiri prevalent in J&K today,” he said.
Before the culmination, the meeting observed a two-minute silence for people killed in the Doda accident. The participants prayed to the departed souls and said the National Conference stands in solidarity with the bereaved families.
