news details |
|
|
| Sane voice in Congress, what who cares? | | Sham for arming forces with fire-arms | | ET Plus Report
JAMMU, Mar 15: Congress leader and Minister in the Omar Abdullah-led coalition Government Sham Lal Sharma is perhaps the only person in the party and the Government who on occasions identified him with people's sentiments and talks sense. There were occasions when he said things without mincing words much against the wishes of his bosses in the party and Government. He was the first Congress leader who had joined the Amarnath land movement to identify him with the Jammu's secular sentiment. Other Congress leaders followed him, of course, for political reasons.
Again, it was Sham Lal Sharma who had denounced the National Conference leadership and other Kashmir-based parties on the ground that they were putting forth demands -- autonomy, self-rule and independence -- which were not acceptable to the people of Jammu and Ladakh. He had left many Congress leaders, including JKPCC chief Saif-ud-Din Soz, crestfallen, by demanding trifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir while addressing a political rally at Bani (Kathua). He had said the people of Jammu and Ladakh could not co-exist with the separatist Kashmiri leadership and had stated that the only panacea available to the people of Jammu and Ladakh was the State's division on regional basis - stand that had provoked some of his colleagues to the extent that the asked the party high command to take stringent action against him.
And yesterday, Sharma identified him with the security forces involved in anti-insurgency operations and demanded that they be armed with fire-arms so that they could meet the challenge, handle protestors and hooligans and defeat and eliminate the enemy. Convinced that the State has been gripped by anarchy and "political bankruptcy", he asked the Government to review it security-related policy and arm the security forces with sophisticated weapons.
Actually, he was responding to media queries on the attitude of the ruling NC and the main opposition PDP towards the issue of Afzal Guru. Without mincing words, he told media persons that the "State is moving towards political bankruptcy - may be I am also coming in it" and criticized Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for addressing Guru as Guru "Sahib" in the House. He also criticized the concerned authorities for not arming the security forces, including CRPF personnel, with lethal weapons and stated that "Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) on use of non-lethal weapons in the Valley needs to be reviewed."
Sham Lal clearly said that he was with the opposition which had expressed the view that the "killing of (5) CRPF men was a result of the State Government's direction that the police and paramilitary personnel shall not carry fire-arms while handling law and order situation". "The Congress will raise this issue in the Cabinet meeting" and ask the Government to revisit the policy. "I think there is a need to re-visit this policy," he told media persons. "The State Government will have to revisit its policy on handling the situation," he also said.
Not only this, Sham Lal also said that the time was not opportune to revoke the AFSPA. In other words, he rejected the Chief Minister's suggestion that the situation in the State had improved substantially and, hence, the AFSPA could be removed from certain peaceful areas. He asserted that the "type of incident (March 13 Fidayeen attack on the CRPF camp in Bemina area of Srinagar) shows that militancy has not been fully stamped out from J&K".
What the question is: Will other Congress Ministers and leaders rise to the occasion, muster courage and follow Sham Lal Sharma? It is difficult to say that they would follow him considering their past conduct. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
