Srinagar, Feb 14 : Setting the stage for a stormy session of the Jammu & Kashmir Legislative Assembly, Peoples Conference president Sajad Gani Lone has submitted a resolution in the Legislative Assembly secretariat condemning the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A in the strongest terms. The resolution also calls for the restoration of the pre-August 5, 2019 constitutional position of Jammu & Kashmir.
Lone, who maintains that the resolution brought by the National Conference-led government in the first session of the House was ambiguous and did not clearly reject the August 5, 2019 decisions, has brought a fresh resolu-tion on the issue.
“The resolution brought by Lone calls for condemning all actions of August 5, 2019 in the strongest terms and seeks the restoration of the pre-August 5, 2019 constitu-tional position,” they said, adding that the resolution has been submitted in the Legislative Assembly secre-tariat.
In the last assembly session, the National Conference-led government had brought a “mild-worded” resolu-tion on the issue of special status. “This Legislative As-sembly reaffirms the importance of the special status and constitutional guarantees, which safeguarded the identity, culture, and rights of the people of J&K, and expresses concern over their unilateral removal,” the NC-led resolution read.
It further stated that the assembly “emphasizes that any process for restoration must safeguard both national unity and the legitimate aspirations of the people of J&K.”
While all Kashmir-based opposition parties, including PDP and PC, had accused NC of bringing a “watered-down” resolution on the issue, the Congress had said that the resolution only seeks the restoration of state-hood and doesn’t call for the reinstatement of Article 370—(KNO)
