Fissures in coalition as NC refuses to attend CC meeting

Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Aug 10: Pradesh Congress president Prof Saif-ud-Din Soz’s statement yesterday in Kathua that Congress has suffered due to “misgovernance of National Conference” has created ripples in the ruling coalition with National Conference today deciding not to attend meeting of the NC-Congress Co-ordination Committee under the chairmanship of Prof Soz in view of his statement.
Toughening the stand and deciding not to take statement of the PCC (I) chief lightly, the National Conference forced Prof Soz to cancel meeting of the Co-ordination Committee as the party members decided not to attend the meeting under chairmanship of Prof Soz to protest his yesterday’s statement against the National Conference made during district convention of the Congress at Kathua.
Significantly, the fissures in the coalition partners have surfaced at a time when the Assembly elections were due in the State in next two months.
Insiders in both the parties told the Excelsior that Prof Soz had called the Co-ordination Committee meeting at 4 pm today at Srinagar Guest House to discuss “issues of urgent nature” and conveyed his decision to all five members-three from National Conference and two from Congress through appropriate channels.
However, sources said, the National Conference conveyed to Prof Soz at 2.30 pm today i.e. one and a half hours before the meeting that it wouldn’t be attending (the meeting) in view of his yesterday’s statement that “Congress has suffered due to misgovernance of National Conference” as the statement was against the `coalition dharma’.
At 3 pm today, Prof Soz sent another message to all the members that the Coordination Committee meeting, scheduled for 4 pm today, has been cancelled.
Sources in the National Conference said that the National Conference has not taken the statement of Prof Soz lightly and was going to directly take it up with the Congress high command as both parties shared the power for last over five and half years.
“Earlier also, Prof Soz had made some statements, which were not good for the coalition Government but this time the NC has decided not to take his statement lightly and lodge strong protest against it within the State as well as with the Congress high command. In fact, the Congress high command was apprised today about the statement of Soz and told that it was not good for him to cast “sweeping remarks” against the party with whom he has been sharing power for past over five and a half years.
Prof Soz, however, claimed that the Coordination Committee meeting was postponed due to Raksha Bandhan festival and also due to the fact that some members were not available in Srinagar. “There was no resentment,” he claimed.
Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand said he got a message yesterday on the Coordination Committee meeting at 4 pm today but received another message at 3 pm today that the meeting has been cancelled. He said he was not aware of any reasons behind cancellation of the meeting.
The Coordination Committee headed by Prof Soz comprised Education Minister Tara Chand and former Deputy Chief Minister Mangat Ram Sharma, all three from Congress, Finance Minister Abdul Rahim Rather, Rural Development Minister Ali Mohammad Sagar, who also happens to be NC general secretary and Transport and CAPD Minister Choudhary Mohammad Ramzan, all three from National Conference.
Sources said the National Conference has categorically told Prof Soz that his statements needs to be discussed at the higher level and that the National Conference members wouldn’t attend the meeting of the Coordination Committee under him as a mark of protest.
“On our part, we feel that there was no deficiency in the Government. If at all Prof Soz feels that something has gone wrong, he too owes a responsibility as infrastructure development departments like PWD, Health and PHE were with the Congress,” NC sources said describing statement of Prof Soz and subsequent developments like NC refusing to attend the Coordination Committee meeting under Soz as “serious political development”.
Moreover, they said, in a coalition Government it is “joint responsibility of successes and failures” of all coalition partners. Prof Soz had reportedly said in Kathua yesterday that Congress had suffered in Jammu and Kashmir due to misgovernance of National Conference.

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