Bill right of J&K Assembly: Cong
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, June 28: Notwithstanding the support of National Conference president and former Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah to the bill granting 3 percent reservation to the border people from the quota of people living on the Line of Control (LoC), party Lok Sabha MP from Anantnag, Hasnain Masoodi today again called for giving second look to the bill and said the decision on it should be left to the Legislature.
Speaking in Lok Sabha on statutory resolution on extension of President’s Rule in J&K and bill granting 3 percent reservation to the people living on the International Border, Masoodi said: “Our party believes that the reservation bill calls for a second look. The bill should be left for the Legislature to take a decision”.
Taking exception to the provisions of the bill, Masoodi said 3 percent reservation quota in jobs and educational institutions etc, which was being enjoyed by about 5.5 lakh people living on the LoC, will have to be shared with nearly 4 lakh additional population living on the International Border.
“The proposed reservation for the people living along International Border is an extension of the reservation granted to people living along LoC, which means people living along IB and LoC will now have to share from the same pool of reservations. Now we would see more people coming for specific number of reserved seats,” Masoodi said.
It may be mentioned here that the NC had also opposed the bill on the day of its introduction in the Lok Sabha.
A day later, Dr Farooq Abdullah had come out with a statement supporting reservation for the people of International Border. NC leader and former Minister Ajay Sadhotra has also supported reservation for the border dwellers.
Meanwhile, opposing the statutory resolution in the Lok Sabha to extend President’s Rule in Jammu and Kashmir, Congress MP Manish Tewari today said an elected Government in the State is in the interest of the nation and will help the Centre in its fight against terrorism.
Alleging that the sense of alienation among the people of Jammu and Kashmir has increased under the BJP Government, Tewari blamed the BJP’s alliance with the PDP for imposition of Governor’s rule in the state.
Participating in the debate, Tewari said the “root cause” of imposition of Governor’s rule in the State was the PDP-BJP coalition, which was “an alliance of ideologically incompatible people.”
It is “not in the interest of people in the State and the country” that Governor’s rule should continue in the State, the Congress leader said, adding, “An elected Government in Jammu and Kashmir will help the Centre in its fight against terrorism there.”
Maintaining that he and his party were not opposed to the Centre’s fight against terrorism, he said, “Fight against terrorism cannot be won when people are not with you.”
Cautioning the Government, Tewari said it should not take such steps which alienate the people of the State. The biggest mistake of the Modi Government was that sense of alienation has increased among people in the State, he said adding, “Government needs to walk two extra miles to integrate them into the national stream.”
Taking on the BJP, Tewari said if the party continues to look at Jammu and Kashmir with “its ideological blinkers,” the problem of the state cannot be resolved.
On the question of Jammu and Kashmir reservation bill, Tewari said his party is not against the spirit of the bill, but actually it is the right of the State Assembly as this proposed legislation comes under its jurisdiction.
Hasnain Masoodi said that from 1951, brick by brick, autonomy of Jammu and Kashmir was demolished by the successive Union Governments.
Masoodi also urged the Government to conduct Assembly Elections in Jammu and Kashmir without any delay.
RSP’s N K Premachandran strongly opposed the resolution but supported the content of the reservation bill.
Describing the Jammu and Kashmir’s Governor decision to dissolve the State Assembly as ‘arbitrary’, he said the right to form an alternative Government was not given.
Premchandaran said Prime Minister Narendra Modi is advocating for simultaneous State Assembly and Lok Sabha polls in the country then why assembly polls were not held along with general elections in Jammu and Kashmir.
Also participating in The debate, Poonam Mahajan (BJP) said that India’s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru committed historical blunder by taking Kashmir issue to the United Nations.
Mahajan further said that for the first time in recent memory there was no protest or curfew when Home Minister Amit Shah visited Kashmir two days ago.
“Kashmiri Pandits are getting respect under Modi Government… Due to previous Government’s appeasement policy, the youth of the country was not able to connect themselves to India,” she said.
Recalling that Modi as the organisation secretary of BJP had hoisted the Indian flag at Srinagar’s Lal Chowk, Mahajan said, “Kashmir will be heaven only under the Modi Government.”
Rahul Shewale (Shiv Sena) said Congress doesn’t want to solve the problem of Kashmir.
Danish Ali (BSP) said that “in order to expand our political base we are deviating from the real issues of Jammu and Kashmir.”
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