Srinagar, Feb 25: People’s Democratic Front (PDF) president and former minister Hakeem Muhammad Yaseen has urged Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to use the National Conference’s majority in the Assembly to regularise thousands of daily wagers who have remained unregulated for decades.
In a statement issued here, Yaseen also called for a ban on liquor, accusing political parties of playing politics over the issue for several decades.
Emphasising the need for bold and decisive action, the former minister reminded the CM of his pre-election commitments and urged him to fulfill promises in the upcoming budget session of the Assembly.
“Every previous government has promised to regularise daily wagers and ban liquor, yet these promises remain unfulfilled. Thousands of workers are still retiring and dying as daily wagers. The time for political rhetoric is over; concrete action is needed now,” he said.
Hakeem said that successive governments failed to address the plight of daily wagers, which led to their continued exploitation. He urged CM Omar Abdullah to break this cycle by introducing policies that ensure job security and financial stability for thousands of workers across Jammu and Kashmir.
Criticising political parties for using the liquor ban issue as a vote-gathering tactic, the PDF chief said the only way to silence the debate is by taking strong legislative action.
“Decades of political drama over the liquor ban have yielded no results. The Chief Minister must act decisively in the Assembly and put an end to this issue once and for all,” he said.
Yaseen also reminded the government of its previous commitments to provide 200 units of free electricity and 12 gas cylinders per year to the people of J&K. “These are not just election promises; they are commitments made to the people. The upcoming budget session is an opportunity to deliver on them,” he added.
