news details |
|
|
| In Kar's demise Congress and Kashmir have lost a vocal voice | | |
M.L. Kak
Early Times Report
Jammu, April 10: Though he may have been a spent- up force for many Congressmen owing to his age,Ghulam Rasool Kar was a voice heard from various quarters in the Kashmir valley.In his demise the Congress has lost a real stalwart,a true nationalist and a real fighter for a cause.
As a senior most Congress leader and a member of the Constituent Assembly Ghulam Rasool Kar was respected within the party circles and in the Congress High command.
Veteran Congress leader and former minister Ghulam Rasool Kar passed away in Srinagar Thursday night. He was 93.Kar was not well for sometime and he breathed his last at S K Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) Soura at around 3 AM. His Nimaz-e-Jinaza was offered at his home town Sopore.One of the two surviving members of Jammu and Kashmir's constituent assembly, Kar was a political startwart who headed the state Congress for long time, was member of parliament and also served as the minister. He was a close associate of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi as also of Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed.
Since Kar belonged to a poor family he,despite having risen in his political career,never lost touch with the downtrodden.He was one among a rare breed of political leaders who remained down to earth in his outlook,in his ideas,in his dress sense and in his approach to dealing with people related problems.
I had come in contact with him during the Assembly election of 1977.At that time he was the senior most leader of the state unit of the Congress.I was tasked by the newspaper for which I worked in Kashmir, to spend a day with top leaders of all political parties that are in the election field.It was at that time I had the opportunity to spend a day with senior separatist leaders,including Prof. Abdul Gani Bhat,Molvi Abbas Ansari and late Dr Qazi Nissar and Abul Razak Bichroo who too were touring Anantnag and Kulgam districts.
Ghulam Rasool Kar had to address a couple of pre-poll rallies in the rural areas of Anantnag district. In one village in South Kashmir after the election rally was over the Congress leaders led by Kar entered into a house where ar rangements for their lunch had been made.I thought that it would be bad on my part if I too joined him over the lunch.I went out to the village market nothing was available excedpt some toffees.While I was searching for a bakery where I could eat a loaf of bread a number of congressmen were found searching for me.The moment they saw me they told me that Kar Sahib was not going to have his lunch unless I joined him.I relented.
He felt elated over the report on his pre-poll rallies which was published in The Tribune.Later this friendship continued for a number of years.After Mufti Mohd.Sayeed,who had headed the Pradesh Congress Committee for a number of years,quit the Congress Ghulam Rasool Kar was appointed as President of the PCC.As chief of the PCC he was often seen either in the civil secretariat or within the lawns of the then Chief Minister,Dr Farooq Abdullah. At times Farooq Abdullah would keep Kar waiting for a period between half an hour or one hour indicating that the Chief Minister had started giving least importance to the PCC Chief.
One day I met Kar in the PCC headquarters and suggested to him to stop his practice,rather daily routine,of meeting the Chief Minister as it would create a bad impression about Kar and the party he headed.Kar said that he had many people-related problems which he wanted to resolve with the help of Dr Farooq Abdullah.I reminded him that when Mufti Sayeed headed the Congress he would never call on any Chief Minister,including Sheikh Abdullah,the tallest political figures in Jammu and Kashmir.He was mum but indicated that he was not going to listen to my suggestion.
In between he would share a number of his experiences with me after he extracted a promise that I would not report it in the newspaper I used to work for.One day I felt peeved over the way Kar had started stooping before fries in the council of ministers headed by Farooq Abdullah. I shared some of the views Kar had shared with me with Jeelani Qadri who used to run a news agency and owned a newspaper.His agency report was published in a number of newspapers.Kar became furious.He suspected my hand in the episode.He talked to me and protested against the leak.That was the end of our intimacy.
As Chief of the PCC a senior party leader,Ghulam Nabi Azad would create one or the other problem for him.But Kar stood firm on his ground despite Azad's success in giving birth to a camp of dissidents.
All these things did not bother Kar who had spent 50 years in politics.At one stage he had worked with Sheikh Abdullah while the former had launched quit Kashmir movement against the Dogra rule.
However,during the last five to seven years the Congress unit in Jammu and Kashmir had almost sidelined Ghulam Rasool Kar.Still people in Sopore would accord respect to him.In his demise the Congress and the Kashmir valley have lost a vocal leader, a sane voice and a charismatic political leader.May God rest his soul in peace.(EOM |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
STOCK UPDATE |
|
|
 |
| BSE
Sensex |
 |
| NSE
Nifty |
|
|
| |
CRICKET UPDATE |
|
|
|
|
| |
| |
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
