‘PDP decision of not fielding candidates will wash its earlier sins’
Nishikant Khajuria
JAMMU, Apr 2: Acknowledging the National Conference and PDP initiative of avoiding division of votes against BJP, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha and senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad today exhorted the workers to translate this alliance at ground by forgetting personal animosity, if any.
“This alliance will be fruitful only if all the votes polled to NC, PDP and Congress in 2014 Assembly elections in each constituency go to Congress candidate in this Lok Sabha polls,” he said while addressing a public meeting in connection with election campaigning in support of Congress candidate from Jammu-Poonch Parliamentary seat, Raman Bhalla at Kotranka in Rajouri on Tuesday.
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In an apparent reference to the election campaign on Modi versus others, Ghulam Nabi Azad said that Prime Minister from which party is more important than the person who is to be Prime Minister. “Several times NC, PDP and Congress contest against each other in the Assembly elections for the formation of Government in the State but this time, it is the election for formation of Government at the national level where there is direct competition between Congress and BJP and not with the regional parties,” he explained.
Ghulam Nabi Azad said that Congress was highly thankful to NC and its president Dr Farooq Abdullah, who keeping in view the situation and its sensitivity, avoided division of votes against BJP and formed an alliance.
“I am also thankful to the People’s Democratic Party, which also decide not to field its candidates on these two seats for avoiding division of secular votes even as we have no alliance with them,” he said adding that the PDP initiative may wash its sin of allying with BJP earlier.
“Otherwise, it was because of PDP that BJP came to power in Jammu and Kashmir. However, it is better late than never,” Azad further said while reminding about alliance between the two parties, which formed State Government after 2014 Assembly polls.
Predicting Congress victory, Ghulam Nabi Azad, however, cautioned against personal wrangling among workers and advised that the alliance against BJP should translate at ground level. “Sometimes differences at workers level fizzle out good decisions at top level, which must be avoided at any cost,” he said and reiterated that decision for alliance should be honoured by all the workers at ground level who should translate the same into victory of the alliance candidate.
Describing Raman Bhalla as most suitable candidate for the Jammu-Poonch Lok Sabha seat, Azad appealed people to vote the Congress for victory of secular forces and development .
Meanwhile, reports from border town Lam in Nowshera said that Ghulam Nabi Azad telephonically delivered a brief address to Congress rally there. A large number of people kept waiting at this border town in Nowshera Assembly constituency to hear Ghulam Nabi Azad, who could not attend the rally due to refusal of concerned authorities for landing of Chopper in the area.
Even as the landing site was later shifted to another place Qila Darhal, which is six kilometer away from Lam, the Administration did not grant necessary permission for landing of the chopper.
Ravinder Sharma, Chief Spokesperson JKPCC and organizer of the rally, alleged foul play in denying permission for landing of the chopper.
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