 Early Times Report
KATHUA, May 20: During a party workers meeting in Kathua organized by Shakeel Ahmed (Tony), NC Block President, Dr. Sheikh Mustafa Kamaal, Additional General Secretary of the National Conference, urged the government to restore democracy in Jammu and Kashmir by holding Assembly elections.
In his address as the Chief Guest, Dr. Sheikh Mustafa Kamaal described the prevailing situation in Jammu and Kashmir as abysmal, with people feeling suffocated due to the absence of a popular government and the authoritarian decisions made by the ruling regime. He emphasized that conducting elections to elect the Assembly is essential to restore faith in the government, as the current bureaucratic rulers are nonchalant towards the issues faced by the common man and are solely focused on pleasing their superiors in Delhi. He further criticized the prolonged imposition of Governor's rule under the present central regime, expressing concern over the potential indefinite extension of LG's rule.
Rattan Lal Gupta, the Provincial President of JKNC Jammu, echoed these sentiments, highlighting the failure of the dictatorial LG's Administration to win the hearts of the people. He pointed out the government's negligence in providing basic amenities, such as regular power and water supply, and criticized the lack of concern shown by the officials towards the hardships faced by the common masses. Gupta cited the neglect of the Ravi Tawi Project as evidence of the government's indifferent attitude towards the people of Kathua and Samba Districts, particularly the farmers who have been severely affected by the project's delayed completion. He also raised concerns about the arbitrary extraction of minor minerals by the mining mafia in Kathua district, which is adversely impacting the environment.
During the meeting, Babu Rampal, former minister and Central Zone President, urged party workers to strengthen the grassroots level cadre in preparation for the upcoming Panchayat and Urban Local Bodies elections. He emphasized the pivotal role that ground-level workers can play in influencing the outcome of the elections and called for mobilizing the grassroots level workers to ensure a resounding victory for the National Conference.
Sheikh Bashir Ahmed, the Provincial Secretary of Jammu JKNC, stressed that the National Conference is the only party capable of addressing the people's problems and emphasized the need to further strengthen the party's base at the grassroots level.
Vijay Lochan, the Provincial President of the SC Cell, and Abdul Ghani Tel, the Provincial President of the OBC Cell, accused the J&K Administration of displaying a negative attitude towards marginalized sections of society. They expressed disappointment with the government's lack of concern for addressing pressing issues faced by SC, ST, and OBC communities in Jammu and Kashmir. They appealed to the members of these communities to support Dr. Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah, asserting that the National Conference alone can provide solutions to their problems.
Prominent attendees at the meeting included Sham Lal Mehra, Farooq Mughal, K.K Bakhshi, Subash Chander Azad, Harshvardhan Singh, Dr. Vikas Sharma, Pardeep Kesar, Mohinder Singh, Ditta Baba Mahajan, S. Harjeet Singh, Kouser Parveen, Janak Raj, Yashpal, Raj Kumar, Ch. Bania, and other party functionaries from different districts and blocks. |
