Excelsior Correspondent
POONCH, June 8: Expressing grave concern over the `provocative’ statement of Centre over delimitation in J&K, former MLA and senior NC leader Javed Ahmed Rana, has alleged that BJP was trying to destabilize the secular integrity and ethos of this State.
“During these five years, the BJP and its cronies had been hoodwinking the innocent public of Jammu on the basis Article 370 and 35A for its politically vested interests”, Rana alleged.
“People should know that Himachal Pradesh is referred as protagonist of Article 35A, where outsiders are debarred to buy land or property without the permission of State Government. Another notable example is Sikkim”, Rana added.
Pertinent to mention here that since 1967 when first Lok Sabha elections were held in the State, JKNC has always won most Lok Sabha seats compared to BJP. Since then BJP had contrived to establish foot in the State, so that its RSS wing can exercise its nefarious designs. Now that the Saffron Party has won some decent seats in Lok Sabha election 2019 from Jammu, its lust and greed for power is quite vivid and apparent, he added.
Rana said in 1995, Justice KK Gupta Commission exercised the delimitation in the State and in April 2002 Farooq Abdullah fixed the move of delimitation to bring the State in line with the rest of the country. The bill was passed unanimously in the State Assembly and 5 members of BJP supported without raising any voice.
Surprised by the perception that Centre was planning to conduct a fresh delimitations of constituencies in J&K, Rana condemned the Centre for this facile move as there it is clearly mentioned in Section 3 of the Constitution (Eighty-fourth amendment), Act 2001 that the deadline for delimitation has been extended from 2000 to 2026 and Indian Constitution puts an upper limit of 550 elected members in the lower house of Parliament.
Rana said under Section 92, Governor has no power to amend the State Constitution and People’s Representation Act which implies that delimitation can’t be exercised in the State.
Follow our WhatsApp channel