Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Sept 12: Terming the Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s assurance of not hurting the sentiments of people by fiddling with Article 35A, as a step taken under pressure from Congress, senior Congress leader and former minister Tariq Hameed Karra today said that this was the first success of Congress Party’s relentless pressure on Government to avoid taking people of the State for granted.
In a statement, Karra said that Rajnath’s sudden Jammu and Kashmir visit and his announcements regarding Centre’s readiness for holding dialogue was the outcome of Congress pressure for which he must be thankful to Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi who have acceded to his request- before he joined the party -of constitution of such a group.
Karra said that it was probably for the first time that Home Minister’s visit to J&K was announced without any pre-schedule which clearly indicates that his visit was to counter balance Congress’s efforts of hand holding attempt towards the people of Jammu and Kashmir and also BJP’s futile exercise to downplay the Congress Policy and Planning group’s Jammu visit led by former Prime Minster Dr Manmohan Singh.
Karra however, said that the aim of the group’s visit was fulfilled when the Home Minster climbed down from the earlier tough stand of not holding a dialogue with anybody. Karra said that when he had filed a petition to safeguard article 35-A in Supreme Court, the hearing was deferred on Government’s request which was an indication of them feeling the heat. He added that now when that heat has began to make BJP-PDP uneasy, the Home Minister has come up with an assurance of not fiddling with the article.
He appealed the people to come forward and meet the Congress Policy and Planning Group during their Kashmir visit that begins on September 16. The former MP said that he has worked tirelessly to make this visit happen so that people of the State are provided an opportunity to share their miseries that have been thrusted upon them by the PDP -BJP Government.
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