*Cong defeated by groupism, ignoring workers: Mir
Gopal Sharma
JAMMU, May 3: Former Union Health Minister and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad today said that BJP and PDP alliance has no right to stay in Government as their ideologies differ and both have caused much damage to the State by engineering polarization and promoting regional discrimination.
Addressing a large party convention for District Congress Committees Jammu Urban and Rural here today, Mr Azad said that some leaders in BJP and even in the PDP are saying that they have different ideologies but still are running Government. He said there can be difference of opinion between the two groups or parties but if their ideologies are different they cannot run Government for the welfare of the people. It is just lust for power which has brought these two parties closer to form Government and set their own agenda, he added.
Launching frontal attack on BJP for promoting communal and regional divide, the AICC leader said Governments are always run on the principles and not religions. “Those are elected by the people have not to act as priests in temples, mosques, churches or Gurdwaras. They may be from any community but they have to ensure development including providing drinking water, electricity to people, open schools and hospitals etc. BJP must shun its old habit of exploiting people on communal lines. Such a move is most dangerous in the sensitive State like J&K,” Azad said.
He said that in his political career of over four decades he has not seen any party’s graph going down so fast as he has seen recently of Modi Government. People have seen the result in Delhi where BJP was thrown out by people. In this State also, the people have changed their opinion against BJP leadership as they have failed to deliver and surrendered the interests of Jammu people who sent them to power by offering 25 seats. They (BJP leaders) were carrying castles in the air and they still are in the air. They have gone silent on every core agenda or issue whether it is AIIMS, Article 370, PoK or West Pak refugees’ settlement.
Referring to sanctioning of five Medical Colleges and two Cancer Institutes to J&K, Mr Azad said when he was Union Health Minister he provided these facilities to J&K but unfortunately, NDA Govt at the Centre and BJP-PDP Coalition Government here have slowed down the work and have not achieved much progress on these projects.
The AICC leader said that condition of farmers is worst in the country. They are already in crisis but by bringing new Bill, the Modi Govt wants to snatch the lands of the farmers in the country. He said that Congress will not allow passage/ implementation of this Bill in the country.
Appreciating the efforts of new PCC chief in infusing new life in the party cadre and CLP leader Nawang Rigzin Jora for his performance in the State Assembly, Azad said the party was gaining strength in the State and appealed the party activists to reach out to the people and expose the NDA which is trying to divert the attention of the people just to cover up its failures. He said the people have now realized that BJP won elections only on falsehood and they have started asking for the report card.
Commenting on Congress functioning in the State, Azad said number of members in the PCC or DCCs does not matter what matters is the people who really work at grass root level to strengthen the party. There is no need to keep number up to 500 or 600. If only 10 or 20 are good performers, they too, can take the organization to great heights. He pointed out that some people were creating groups by using his name which is unfortunate. He, however, mentioned that groupism is a national ailment in the Congress party and time has come to stem it out.
Azad also paid tributes to Late Om Chopra, former DCC Jammu (U) president and expressed that he had great desire to organize a party convention in Jammu when he last met him in Jammu.
PCC chief Ghulam Ahmed Mir said that Congress was not defeated by BJP or PDP in the State but due to groupism and by the party workers ignored by the leaders in Government.
Mir said, “Congress has been damaged from within by our own people. I will have zero-tolerance against those people who are out to damage the party even if it would be my close people”.
Mir, who took over as the State party chief in March this year following debacle in Assembly polls in the State, said “During my over 60 days of assessment after taking over as Party chief, I found two main reasons for debacle of Congress in Assembly polls”.
While one is groupism within the party and another is ignoring Congress workers by the party leadership while party was in rule, he said.
“Since 2002, Congress was in rule for 12 years, we had Ministers, MoS and people at top places in the State Government, but we ignored workers and activists and gave no respect and dignity to them,” Mir said.
“They were behind our victory in 2002 and 2008 Assembly elections, but they relaxed during 2014 elections which resulted in our defeat,” PCC chief said.
Calling for ending groupism and respecting party workers, Mir said we should close five and six doors of powers and factions in Congress to make it powerful.
“Workers are backbone of Congress and we will empower them”, he said. “I am grass root worker and my first important party component is my grass root worker.”
On his being made party president, he said “I have not come via parachute to head Congress but I am grass root worker. I am not son of any Minister or anybody else”.
“Some people are not happy with my induction as PCC president. I have no problem to step down if they wish to shoulder this responsibility,” Mir added.
Senior party leaders, Sham Lal Sharma, Raman Bhalla, Nawang Rigzin Jora, Madan Lal Sharma, Anil Chopra, Balwan Singh, Kanta Bhan and others also spoke on the occasion.
Some senior Congress leaders including Tara Chand, Gulchain Singh Charak, R S Chib, Mula Ram, Janak Raj Gupta, Dharampal Sharma and Th Hari Singh stayed away from this important party convention.
Earlier, a resolution was moved in the convention by PCC general secretary Shah Mohd and it was unanimously passed by the members present.
Prominent among others present on the occasion included- Mohd Sharief Niaz, Ravinder Sharma, Indu Pawar, Pranav Shagotra, Dr Manohar Lal, Yogesh Sawhney, Shabir Khan, Vikram Malhotra, Shah Mohd, Namarata Sharma, S S Shingari, Rameshwar Singh, BS Sambyal, Manmohan Singh, Ch Shahnawaz, Ch Ab Rashid, Ashwani Puri, MK Bhardwaj, Satish Sharma, Shashi Sharma etc.
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