news details |
|
|
| CM from Jammu could be the Cong's poll plank | | 2014 Assembly elections | |
Rustam
JAMMU, July 6: Things in the desperate Congress camp are becoming clearer by the day as far Jammu & Kashmir State and future relations with the National Conference are concerned. The senior leadership of the Congress party in J&K has, according to highly placed sources in the Congress, candidly told former Defence Minister and Sonia Gandhi's point-man A K Antony -- who has also been charged with responsibility of looking into the causes responsible for the Congress's humiliating defeat in the Lok Sabha elections across the country - that any pre-poll alliance with the NC in the upcoming assembly elections would be suicidal.
Those who appeared to took this line included JKPCC chief Saif-ud-Din Soz, former Union Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand, three Cabinet Ministers in the Omar Abdullah's coalition government Sham Lal Sharma, Rigzin Jora and Taj Mohi-ud-Din and defeated Madan Lal Sharma. Sources informed that those from the state who met with A K Antony and other Congress leaders, including AICCgeneral secretary Mukal Wasnik and secretaries Avinash Pandey and R C Khuntia, in Delhi on Saturday to discuss the issue of coming elections in J&K, not only opposed the idea of pre-poll alliance with the NC, but also told them that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had never been accommodating and that he had been functioning like a dictator and like a leader as if he had been running a single-party government. Sources also informed that these Congress leaders, who had one-on-one meeting with the central leaders, denounced Omar Abdullah for the reason that he never accepted the Congress's suggestions on what should be done to meet the demands of the refugees as well as 73rd constitutional amendment. They, according to insiders, told A K Antony and others that the three important factors that culminated in the defeat of the Congress in the Lok Sabha election in Jammu and Ladakh were the indifferent attitude of Omar Abdullah to the Congress suggestions on refugees and 73rd amendment and the August 9, 2013 Kishtwar attack on the minority Hindus and the manner in which the Omar Abdullah government handled the sensitive issue. The failure of the Congress to fulfill the promises made in the election manifesto also contributed to the defeat of the Congress in the Lok Sabha elections, the local Congress leaders, as per the credible sources within the party, also said.
Sources also informed that these Congress leaders told the central leadership that if the Congress is to bounce back in the state, it has only two options. One, it must snap ties with the NC "at the earliest" so that it could avoid the anti-incumbency associated with the Omar Abdullah-led government. Two, it Congress should contest election on Jammu-specific poll planks. "The Congress needs to project a Jammu-based leader as its chief ministerial candidate for the upcoming assembly election," some Congress leaders, according to sources, also told the central Congress leaders. It bears recalling that in 2002, the Congress had also said that a vote for the Congress would not only mean end of discrimination with Jammu province and establishment of regional development board for Jammu and creation of a delimitation commission, but would also mean Chief Minister from Jammu province.
These four poll planks had helped the Congress win 18 out of 37 assembly seats in Jammu province. But things have changed now. Bulk of population in the state has little or no trust in the Congress leadership. It will have to work hard to win back the trust of alienated people of Jammu province. It has to identify itself with the outraged Jammu sentiment and behave accordingly. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
STOCK UPDATE |
|
|
 |
| BSE
Sensex |
 |
| NSE
Nifty |
|
|
| |
CRICKET UPDATE |
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
