The J&K Assembly held its first sitting in six years.
Srinagar:
There was ruckus in the newly elected Jammu and Kashmir Assembly Monday morning – as it held its first sitting in six years – after People’s Democratic Party lawmaker Wahid Parra tabled a surprise resolution against the scrapping of Article 370 in August 2019, and called for it to be restored.
Bharatiya Janata Party lawmakers resisted Mr Parra’s resolution and demanded his suspension, even as Speaker Rahim Rather of the ruling National Conference said he had not yet admitted any motion.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah – who earlier said it would be “foolish” to expect the BJP to restore Article 370 – said he knew the resolution was coming, and said, “The reality is the people of J&K do not approve of the (Article 370) decision… If they did, then the results today would have been different.”
However, Mr Abdullah also said the resolution “has no importance… it is only for the cameras”. “If there was a purpose behind it, then they (the PDP) would have discussed this with us before…” he said.
The BJP-led centre revoked Article 370 five years ago, in a contentious move marked by furious protests from political parties and politicians in Jammu and the Kashmir Valley. The revocation was challenged in the Supreme Court that, in December last year, ruled the provision a “temporary” one.
Article 370 had given J&K special status and privileges. Post its removal the central government also split the former state into two union territories – that of J&K and, separately, Ladakh.
Restoration of Article 370 was among the key poll planks in last month’s election – the first in J&K in a decade, since the PDP-BJP government broke down and President’s Rule was imposed.
The NC-Congress alliance won the October 8 election; as it turned out, however, the NC did not need support, sweeping 42 of J&K’s 90 elected seats and gaining support from four independent lawmakers, as well as the lone Aam Aadmi Party rep, to cross the majority mark of 48.
However, a day after the NC’s victory was confirmed, Omar Abdullah, theh the Chief Minister-elect, said expecting Article 370 to be restored by “the people who snatched it will be foolish”. Mr Abdullah, though, stressed that the NC’s position on this would not change. “We have never said that we will remain silent on Article 370 or that Article 370 is not an issue for us now…” he told reporters.
READ | “Seeking Article 370 Restoration From BJP Foolish”: Omar Abdullah
“We will continue to talk on this and hope tomorrow there will be a change of government (and) there will be a new setup with whom we can discuss this and get something for J&K.”
He did, though, say the election result was a clear rejection of the scrapping of Article 370.
The NC leader, however, did call on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP-led alliance at the centre to restore J&K’s statehood, a promise Mr Modi made in the run-up to the election.
“The PM is an honourable man,” he told NDTV, “… I hope he lives up to his word.” Mr Abdullah rejected the notion that the PM’s promise was contingent on a BJP victory. “Nowhere has the BJP ever said – first there will be our government and then statehood. The PM never said that.”
In a push for what the Chief Minister and the new government feel is the more achievable objective, the new J&K Cabinet, on October 18, passed a resolution for restoration of statehood.
READ | Omar Abdullah Passes Resolution For Restoration Of J&K’s Statehood
That resolution also emphasised the new J&K government’s commitment to protect the identity and constitutional rights of the people of the former state, whose residents had special rights, including relating to land ownership and job privileges, under Article 370.
And, two weeks ago Mr Abdullah met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi to begin talks on statehood. Sources told NDTV Mr Shah gave his full support for J&K to become a state again.
READ | Amit Shah Meets Omar Abdullah, Assures J&K Statehood: Sources
Since becoming Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah has made it clear he does not want a combative relationship with the central government, arguing this would further hamper J&K’s development.
“Jammu and Kashmir, with its complex security situation and proximity to the border, cannot afford a confrontation between the state government and the centre. I’m looking forward to a constructive relationship in the true spirit of federalism,” he said after being taking his oath.
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