Now, Farooq threatens to boycott assembly, LS polls
National Conference president has already declared that his party will not take part in upcoming elections to panchayats and urban local bodies
SRINAGAR : National Conference (NC) chief Farooq Abdullah on Saturday threatened to boycott assembly and Lok Sabha polls in Jammu and Kashmir in case the Centre doesn’t make its stand clear on Article 35A and Article 370 of the Constitution. The party has already declared that it will not take part in upcoming elections to panchayats and urban local bodies.
Article 35A gives special rights to J&K’S permanent residents. It disallows people from outside the state from buying or owning immovable property in the state, settle permanently, or avail of state-sponsored scholarship schemes. It also forbids the J-K government from hiring people who are non-permanent residents. It grants autonomous status on the sensitive state.
Abdullah’s comments come amid a debate over the two articles, which some want abrogated. A plea in the case has been filed by a Delhi-based NGO, We the Citizens, saying the state’s autonomous status granted by Article 35(A) and Article 370 of the Constitution discriminate against citizens from the rest of the country.
Andullah, who is also the MP from Sinagar, said at a function to commemorate the 37 death anniversary of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, his father, that the NC will not only boycott the panchayat and local body polls, but also stay away from assembly and parliament elections incase Centre doesn’t make its stand on Article 35A and 370 clear.
‘’We are not afraid of elections, neither we are running away from this process, but first do justice with us. First do justice with us, then only we will move forward. Today everybody in Kashmir ,whether a shopkeeper, hotelier, labourer, taxi driver, shikarawala, ponywala... are perturbed that something is going to happen after these elections vis-à-vis Article 35A.’’
Lok Sabha elections are due in the first half of next year. The J&K assembly has been under suspended animation and the state under Governor’s rule since chief minister Mehbooba Mufti resigned in June after the BJP pulled out of a coalition government with her PDP.
Abdullah said that government should call all political leaders and talk to them about elections. “The Prime Minister, like Hitler, made an announcement on August 15 that they are going to hold elections in the state. On one side elections are being declared and other side they talk of removal of Article 35A and 370. They now speak against our separate constitution. How can we go to the people and seek votes”. First clear it, if you are for removal, then our paths are different. Not only will we boycott this election we will not even participate in assembly or Lok Sabha elections, bring whosoever you want to bring,’’ he said.
Abdullah noted National Security Advisor Ajit Doval’s description of a separate J&K constitution as an aberration, adding: ‘ I am telling Doval and the Centre government if our constitution is wrong, then accession with India is also wrong.’’ Last week, Abdullah, after chairing a meeting of the Core group of his party, had decided that the NC will not participate in the panchayat and local body elections.