Says Centre forced NC to protest in Delhi after failing to honour promises made in Parliament and before the Supreme Court*
Rehan Qayoom Mir
New Delhi/Srinagar, July 20 ;
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday said the Centre had “forced” the National Conference (NC) to stage a protest in New Delhi by failing to honour its promise of restoring Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood.
Addressing reporters in the national capital, Omar, according to the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said the party had been reminding the Central government for more than two years to fulfil the assurances made in Parliament and before the Supreme Court regarding the restoration of statehood.
“The Central government has forced us to come to Delhi and protest. For the past two and a quarter years, we have only been reminding them to fulfil the promises made to the people in Parliament and the Supreme Court,” he said.
The Chief Minister said the National Conference remained committed to its political agenda and would continue to pursue the issues it had raised.
“In the first Assembly session, we passed a resolution on Jammu and Kashmir’s special position, special status and constitutional rights. We are not leaving that agenda,” he said.
Omar said the immediate objective of the protest was to seek restoration of statehood, adding that other political issues would follow thereafter.
“The purpose of today’s protest is to remind the Central government of its promise. Everything will start from there—first statehood, then the resolution passed by the Assembly,” he said.—(KNO)