Srinagar: As the opposition parties continue to fire salvos at National Conference (NC) over the Congress’ jettisoning of the resolution passed by an overwhelming vote in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly earlier this month and which sought the restoration of the erstwhile state’s constitutional special status revoked by the Centre in August 2019, the ruling party sees in the harangue a deliberate attempt to drive a wedge between it and its alliance partner.
“The game plan is to cause ill feelings between the two parties in order to weaken their relationship,” said a party leader. Ifra Jan, NC’s social media and digital platforms in charge, put it more bluntly. She said that the BJP and its “allies” are desperately trying to make alliance partners fight so that the Omar Abdullah government collapses and the Centre’s rule is reimposed on J&K.
In a post on ‘X’, she said, “INC's stand on J&K has been what it is today, for months now. But why are BJP allies desperate to make us fight? Because if that happens, the government falls & we are back to the L-G rule as a UT that has no chance of getting back its statehood.”
Expressing concern over the “unilateral removal” of special status and constitutional guarantees, the resolution moved in the house by Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary called upon the Government of India to initiate dialogue with elected representatives of the people of J&K for "restoration of special status, constitutional guarantees and to work out constitutional mechanisms for restoring these provisions." It, however, emphasized that any process for restoration "must safeguard both national unity and the legitimate aspirations of the people of J&K".
The BJP rejected the resolution, calling it “anti-national” and a part of the "agenda of Pakistan and terrorists" and created a ruckus in the Assembly over it. The Congress members did not join the brawl that ensued in the house due to the resistance put up by the BJP. Only one of its six members Nizamuddin Bhat termed as "against the house rules" the way the BJP members reacted to the moving of the resolution at the outset.
On day three (November 6), when some members engaged themselves in a scuffle after independent legislator Khursheed Ahmed Sheikh stormed into the well of the house waving a banner that read, ‘We demand restoration of Articles 370 and 35A and release of political prisoners’, the act that exasperated the BJP members, Congress legislator Irfan Hafiz Lone also attempted to be a part of the showdown but was beckoned by JKPCC chief and member of the house Tariq Hameed Karra to retract. Mr. Karra and other Congress members watched the whole fracas in the house silently.
On the other hand, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), the J&K People’s Conference (PC) and supporting groups and lawmakers had accused the NC of bringing an ambiguous resolution in the house instead of unequivocally condemning the Centre’s revoking Articles 370 and 35A and seeking their reinstation in the Constitution.
The BJP has called out the Congress for trying to bring back Article 370 and 35A. Its leadership including Prime Minister Narendra Modi is using the Congress’ supporting the resolution as a ‘political weapon’ against the opposition party in the campaigning for the assembly elections in Maharashtra and Jharkhand. “Congress wants to push Jammu and Kashmir back into violence by restoring Article 370. Article 370 will never be restored,” the Prime Minister said while addressing an election rally at Akola last week. Union Home Minister Amit Shah while speaking at an election rally in Maharashtra said, ““Even the fourth generation of Rahul Gandhi will not be able to restore Article 370 in Kashmir”. At another rally, he had said, “Even if Indira Gandhi were to return from heaven, Article 370 won’t be restored.”
In his reaction to Mr. Shah’s statements, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge told a press conference in Pune on Thursday, “Amit Shah claims Congress wants to bring back Article 370, but who in Congress has ever stated this? Parliament has settled this issue. If BJP truly believes it, let them say it openly in Kashmir now that elections are over.”
NC leader Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi who represents the Srinagar constituency in Lok Sabha criticised Mr. Kharge for misinterpreting the resolution. He took to the microblogging site ‘X’ to say, “No INC president or JKPCC president has a right to misinterpret the resolution passed by the J&K Legislative Assembly in the last session. The purpose of that resolution is to express the people’s disapproval of all the amendments and unconstitutional abrogation of the guaranteed (Special) Status of J&K from the year 1953 to 2019.”
He added, “This resolution calls for the return of all the guarantees in their original shape and form as was operational before 1953 including Art 370 and 35A. Let alone JKPCC or any other entity. Even if anyone from within @JKNC_ tries to misinterpret the resolution otherwise and against the wishes of the people, will be rejected and pushed by the people to a corner of irrelevance as the allies of BJP were in the last election.”-"
Mr. Karra said in an interview on Sunday that his party supported the resolution in the assembly in favour of “statehood” with guarantees for land, jobs and natural resources. While strongly backing Mr. Kharge’s statement on Article 370, he told PTI, “As far as the Congress is concerned, we made our position clear. After the Supreme Court’s verdict on abrogation, the only viable demand left is for statehood. This is because the Supreme Court clearly stated that whatever happened was constitutional as far as Parliament is concerned.”
NC president and former chief minister Farooq Abdullah sees in the Congress leaders statement the party’s own compulsions. He told reporters in Jammu on Saturday that the party is under attack from the BJP, with the Prime Minister and Home Minister “shouting repeatedly at them just to win the elections” in Maharashtra and Jharkhand. He added, “They (BJP) are thinking that they will weaken the Congress, but we will not allow that to happen. We are hopeful that they (INDIA bloc) will win the elections.”
The PDP, the PC and other opposition parties and groups are seizing the Congress leaders’ statements to cause embarrassment to NC and besmirch its leadership particularly chief minister Omar Abdullah by openly accusing them of betraying the mandate of the people. Former chief minister and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti while asserting that the issue of Article 370 is linked to the sentiments of the people who have given a huge mandate to the NC and reposed their trust in it said, “Since the resolution is full of ambiguity and lacks clarity, the NC, Congress, and especially the Government, must be clear as to whether the resolution was for the restoration of Statehood or Article 370.”
PCC chairman Sajad Gani Lone said, “Let it be clear. The resolution is akin to rubbing salt to the wounds of the people.” He said that if the NC was so serious about the 1953 position or Article 370 or 35 A or August 5 “why didn’t they write so in plain English.” He added, “It is, was and will always be a fixed match between the BJP and the NC. The reaction of BJP was all so expected, putting Congress in the dock in the context of elections in Maharashtra”.
