Congress boycotts BDC polls in J&K, cites detention

JAMMU: The Congress on Wednesday announced a boycott of the Block Development Council (BDC) polls in Jammu and Kashmir on October 24, citing the continued detention of political leaders. “The Congress believes in strengthening democratic institutions and it has never shied away from any polls. But today, we are compelled to take a decision to boycott the BDC polls due to the indifferent attitude of the state administration and the continued detention of senior party leaders in the Valley,” J&K Congress chief Ghulam Ahmed Mir said.

Former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti are under detention since August when the Centre moved to revoke J&K’S special status and split the state into two Union territories.

Mir, who was released from house arrest in Jammu last week, accused the state administration of deliberately creating hurdles for the political parties in the state to facilitate the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’S victory in the BDC polls.

National Conference’s provincial president Devender Singh Rana said, “Nearly 60% of members of our parliamentary board is under detention. Under these circumstances, how can one think of taking part in the polls?”

People Democratic Party general secretary Ved Mahajan said, “Our party president Mehbooba Mufti...so we are uncertain about our participation.” BHOPAL/GWALIOR:CONGRESS general secretary Jyotiraditya Scindia said on Wednesday that the party needed to introspect and assess the present situation to make improvements.

Speaking to reporters in Gwalior, Scindia refused to comment on remarks by senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid, who had said that the party’s biggest problem was that its “leader walked away”.

“It’s not my habit to make a statement on someone else’s statement. But there is no ambiguity that Congress does need introspection and assessing the present situation to make improvements is the need of the hour,” Scindia said. Khurshid had said the party had not got together to analyse why it lost the 2019 general elections. “Our biggest problem is our leader has walked away,” Khurshid had said, in what was seen as an indirect reference to Rahul Gandhi quitting as party chief.

On the party’s prospects in poll-bound Maharashtra, Scindia said his role was confined to the election screening committee.