SRINAGAR, June 1:
National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah today voiced apprehensions over fairness of the upcoming bypoll in Anantnag Assembly constituency from where Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti is contesting and questioned its timing as it coincides with the holy month of Ramzan.
The former Chief Minister, who is often accused of rigging the Assembly elections of 1987 which is believed to have given birth to militancy, insisted that he had done no such thing.
Referring to the upcoming June 19 Assembly bypoll, he said, “I have no hopes that they will conduct an honest election in Anantnag because when they postponed the elections, they said the situation was not good and they cannot take place. Tell me, is the situation any better today?”
He also questioned the timing of the bypoll.
“(The elections are being held) when there is the month of Ramadhan, when people here fast. And on the polling day is the anniversary of a religious leader. Is this right? Ask this to those who are the owners of the Election Commission. Do they do justice with the people of J&K,” he said.
The bypoll have been necessitated due to the demise of the then Chief Minister Mufti Sayeed, who was father of Mehbooba Mufti.
The NC president, whose party has fielded industrialist-politician Iftikhar Misger to take on Mehbooba, said he hopes that the people of Anantnag would realize that the PDP leader has “joined those forces who want destruction of the State.”
He said NC is going to fight election for this Assembly seat “determinedly”.
Abdullah said the ruling PDP’s charge that NC had rigged the 1987 elections was wrong. The NC-Congress alliance had won those elections and the Government was headed by him.
“They will say this. Now, we have to see what they did in the 25 years before me. Were those fair elections in which they won? They say five have been rigged, but they rigged 40 here,” he said.
Abdullah said if he wanted to rig the polls in 1987, then his own Ministers would have won. “My Minister lost the election, no one saw that. If Farooq Abdullah wanted to rig the polls, then he would have made those Ministers win them,” he said.
Responding to a question on Mehbooba saying that history will prove that Sayeed was right on allying with the BJP, Abdullah told reporters, “I think history will show who is right and who is wrong. Farooq Abdullah does not have the answer to this question. It will be answered by the historians when I will not be probably alive and you will be probably alive and you will hear what the historians have to say.”
On India-Pakistan ties, he said situation in Jammu and Kashmir would never improve unless the two countries come to an understanding and find an amicable solution which would be acceptable to a majority of people.
“The Kashmir situation will never improve unless India and Pakistan come to an understanding. Unless they meet and decide the future of the two Kashmirs — one which is held by them (Pakistan) and one which is with India,” he said.
“They have to sit together and find a solution which will be amicable and accepted by the larger majority of people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh, by the people of India in larger majority and people of Pakistan in larger majority,” he said.
The National Conference leader said dialogue is the only way to find a solution which will be acceptable to the majority of the people. “That is the only solution that can work. No other solution will work,” he said.
Abdullah said there was a lot of rhetoric in the budget presented by the Government. “I oppose the budget there is a lot of rhetoric in it. I would like to see something on the ground and the other thing, we want tourists to come here,” he said.
“Today the airfares are so high as compared to when there is winter and they have raised the aviation fuel tax. Is that going to reduce airfare or will that further increase it? Where from will you bring the tourists? If the fares are so high that going to Dubai, Singapore or Thailand will be cheaper for them and visiting Kashmir will be costlier, then they will not come, he said. (PTI)
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