Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Mar 6: Peoples Conference senior vice president and former Minister Abdul Gani Vakil today urged Government of India to take confidence building measures so as to make a conducive environment prior to holding elections in J&K.
In a press statement here today Vakil said that holding elections in J&K should not be at the cost of democracy. He said electoral process can only be successful if maximum participation of people is ensured. ” Less participation of people in the electoral process undermines democracy. State assembly is a collective voice of people and to ensure its legitimacy there has to be significant participation in polls, ” Vakil said.
Condemning GoI’s move to ban JeI and arrest its activists Vakil said instead of arresting JeI workers GoI should release political prisoners as a confidence building measure before the polls.
“New Delhi has to understand that nothing has come out of such tactics. Banning Jamaat is against the political ethos. Democracy is about variety, allowing political space for all sorts of political opinions and organizations. They have even participated in the election before the eruption of militancy. Rather than putting a ban on JeI, the Government should engage with them”, he added.
Follow our WhatsApp channel