PM’s meeting with J&K leaders ‘positive’ step, says Karan Singh
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Former J&K Governor Karan Singh on Friday mentioned statehood have to be restored earlier than holding Assembly polls.
Describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with prime political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir as a “very positive step”, veteran Congress chief and former J&K governor Karan Singh on Friday mentioned statehood have to be restored earlier than holding Assembly polls there and asserted that such a transfer would go a good distance in serving to to “heal the wounds” of the folks.
Mr. Singh, the son of Maharaja Hari Singh who signed the phrases of Kashmir’s accession in 1947, additionally mentioned his private opinion is that prima facie the revocation of particular standing below Article 370 appears “irreversible” however asserted that the matter was earlier than the Supreme Court and it have to be determined by the highest court docket.
In an interview with PTI, the final Sadr-e-Riyasat and first governor of the erstwhile state additionally demanded that the Centre should present a “financial-cum- developmental package” to the folks whose livelihoods have been badly affected over the past two years following the Centre’s transfer to bifurcate Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories and revoke its particular standing.
His remarks come a day after Modi held talks with prime political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir and instructed them that the Centre’s precedence is to strengthen grassroots democracy there for which delimitation has to occur rapidly for polls to be held.
Reacting to the Prime Minister’s meeting with 14 political leaders of Jammu and Kashmir, together with 4 former chief ministers, Mr. Singh mentioned, “I definitely think it is a very positive step. First of all, because everybody was involved and people who once were discarded as anti-national, they all came — National Conference and Peoples Democratic Party both.” “I believe everybody spoke their mind very frankly and the prime minister listened very attentively to everybody. Three and a half hours of the meeting was there and my own view is that it is a very positive move because something was needed to break the ice,” the previous Union minister mentioned.
The complete state of affairs after the change of standing had change into “ossified politically”, Mr. Singh mentioned, including that the meeting was the beginning of a political course of that’s to be welcomed.
Asked in regards to the demand of most of Jammu and Kashmir leaders of restoration of statehood, he mentioned it was a unanimous view as a result of after being in particular standing for 70 years all of a sudden to be demoted to not even a state right down to a Union Territory is “something nobody in Jammu and Kashmir has appreciated”.
“So statehood is a universal demand, the question is timing. Now as I understand the situation, the first step now is delimitation. The delimitation commission is already working, they should submit their report very soon. After delimitation then the next step is elections. My own view is that…we should have elections as a full state,” Mr. Singh mentioned.
He asserted that full statehood for Jammu and Kashmir ought to undoubtedly be restored earlier than meeting elections as a result of if it goes to polls as a Union territory after which turns into a state, that will not make any sense as a result of the conditions are completely different with distinction in standing.
“As soon as possible, we should get statehood, I mean if we get it tomorrow there is nothing like it but in any case when we fight the next elections we must fight them as a full-fledged state,” the 90-year-old chief mentioned.
Mr. Singh additionally lamented that it was a “strange irony” that his father signed the instrument of accession for the entire state and “today we are having to fight for statehood”.
Asked if statehood might scale back “dil ki doori’ — a term used by Prime Minister Modi at the meeting, Mr. Singh said restoring statehood will go a long way to help “heal the wounds”.
“By itself, it won’t be enough but it would definitely be a major step,” he added.
Asked about calls from a bit for restoring Article 370 provisions that granted particular standing to J&K and have been abrogated in 2019, Mr. Singh mentioned, “My personal belief in this is that it seems to me prima facie that the changes are irreversible but the matter is before the Supreme Court so we shouldn’t unnecessarily make any detailed comment on it what should be done and what should not be done.” The veteran Congress chief urged the Supreme Court to take up the matter quickly, asserting that it was a really essential and necessary difficulty that ought to be given precedence. Asked about divergent views struck by Congress leaders on the Article 370 difficulty, Singh mentioned he was not a Congress spokesperson and wouldn’t wish to converse on behalf of the get together.
“I expressed my personal view that it did not seem to me that Article 370 can be restored…My view may be slightly divergent from others. But the consensus is what Ghulam Nabi (Azad) said” and the matter is earlier than the Supreme Court and they’ll determine on it.
Asked what have been his expectations from the Centre on J&K going ahead, Singh mentioned he anticipated that they’d transfer ahead as they are saying on delimitation, elections and statehood.
Demanding a financial-cum- developmental package deal for the folks of J&K, Singh mentioned for 2 years the state suffered very closely.
“The whole Kashmir Valley, the horticulture was destroyed, tourism which is our mainstay was destroyed so tens of hundreds of crores of losses were suffered,” he mentioned, including that in Jammu additionally heavy losses have been incurred.
“So they should first compensate those people who lost during those two years,” he mentioned.
Mr. Modi’s J&K outreach noticed the Prime Minister conveying to the 14 political leaders from the union territory throughout their face-to-face meeting right here that he wished to finish the ‘Dilli ki Doori’ in addition to ‘Dil ki Doori’ (distance from Delhi in addition to the space of hearts) with Jammu and Kashmir, which has witnessed a chronic spell of militancy and unrest.
The 4 former chief ministers of the erstwhile state who participated within the discussions have been Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar Abdullah of the National Conference, Congress’ Ghulam Nabi Azad and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti.
Four former deputy chief ministers have been in attendance too – Congress’ Tara Chand, People’s Conference chief Muzaffar Hussain Baig and BJP’s Nirmal Singh and Kavinder Gupta.
CPI(M) chief Mohammed Yusuf Tarigami, Jammu and Kashmir Apni Party (JKAP) chief Altaf Bukhari, Sajjad Lone of the People’s Conference, J-K Congress head G A Mir, BJP’s Ravinder Raina and Panthers Party chief Bhim Singh additionally shaped a part of the delegation.
This was the primary interplay between the highest management of the Union authorities and mainstream events in J&K since August 5, 2019, when the Centre revoked its particular standing offered below Article 370 and bifurcated the border state into Union Territories ofJammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
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