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| Congress's vague reaction to NC's independence demand | | Attack on Nazir meaningless | | Rustam
JAMMU, Jan 12: Left with no option but to take stand under pressure from the opposition parties like the JKNPP, BJP and the PDP on what NC general secretary Sheikh Nazir said on January 8 at party headquarters in Srinagar in the presence of at least two NC Ministers, besides a few legislators and party workers, spokesperson of J&K Congress finally on Friday issued a statement explaining away his party's position. Attacking and castigating New Delhi, Sheikh Nazir had demanded plebiscite in the State and explained the meaning of "khudmukhtari". He had said "autonomy means khudmukhtari" and "khudmukhtari means independence".
The NC general secretary had, in other words, demanded complete independence from India. The opposition parties, especially the BJP and the JKNPP, had reacted very sharply and held protest demonstrations against the NC and the Congress both in Jammu and Delhi and demanded dismissal of the NC-led coalition Government. Besides, they had urged the powers-that-be to book the NC leadership under charge of sedition, saying the seditionists could not be allowed to go scot-free. Incidentally, both the JKNPP and the BJP had virtually held the Congress responsible for the kind of politics the NC had been indulging in since January 2009 to muddy the Indian waters in Kashmir and ridiculed and questioned the Congress leadership.
Convinced that the Congress had become an object of contempt and ridicule for maintaining silence on an issue of great national import, the party spokesperson attacked the NC general secretary and said "such people represent sick minds within their party as its leadership always advocated for strengthening the bonds of relationship with Centre and the Congress Party". "Leaders like Sheikh Nazir always (live in a fool's) paradise and could not come out of their basic mentality to work for the better future of the people of Kashmir. Politicians like him were responsible for misguiding and exploiting the sentiments of Kashmiri youth and pushing the state towards worst kind of turmoil and destruction,'' he said and advised that "they better change their mindset and stop vitiating the atmosphere of peace in the State''. Of course, he also suggested that his party was opposed to any such demand as aims at reversing the process of integration with India.
The statement that the Congress spokesperson made under pressure from below could not be considered an appropriate response to what the BJP and the JKNPP termed as a "seditious" statement made by Sheikh Nazir and the PDP described as "dangerous politics" being indulged in by the NC and the Congress. He made a vague statement. He only targeted Sheikh Nazir forgetting that he made anti-India statements in the meeting where the NC Ministers were present, as also conveniently overlooking the fact that till January 11 neither the NC president and Union Minister nor its working president and Chief Minister had dissociated themselves from what their general secretary and a very close relative had said. As a matter of fact, the Congress spokesperson defended the NC by saying "such people (read the likes of Sheikh Nazir) represent sick minds within their party as its leadership always advocated for strengthening the bonds of relationship with Centre and the Congress Party". His statement would have been appreciated had the party president Farooq Abdullah and working president Omar Abdullah expelled Sheikh Nazir from the party and booked him under the law of land the day the NC general secretary poured venom on India and demanded independence.
The Congress cannot target the NC general secretary, as he only represents his party and party stand. By targeting Sheikh Nazir alone, the Congress has only exposed its political bankruptcy. He should know that the NC president and working president, besides NC leaders like Mehboob Beg, have been expressing similar views but in a sophisticated manner. |
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