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| ‘Humiliated’ Cong maintains stoic silence over exclusion from MLAs meeting | | | Early Times Report
Jammu, June 2: The Congress leaders have maintained a guarded silence over its exclusion from Chief Minister Omar Abdullah's upcoming meeting with ruling alliance legislators and Independent MLAs, even as senior party leaders privately described the move as a slight that runs contrary to the spirit of coalition politics. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has convened a meeting of National Conference (NC) legislators and Independent MLAs supporting the government at his Gupkar residence in Srinagar on June 3 amid growing concerns over governance issues and reported dissatisfaction among some ruling party legislators regarding the functioning of certain ministers.
While invitations have been sent to all 41 NC legislators and Independent MLAs backing the government, Congress, which is an alliance partner with six MLAs in the Assembly, has not been invited to the meeting.
Although Congress leaders have refrained from publicly criticising the National Conference leadership, several senior leaders expressed disappointment over the party's exclusion.
Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a senior Congress leader said the decision to leave out Congress while inviting Independent legislators supporting the government was difficult to understand.
"There would have been no issue had the meeting been confined exclusively to National Conference legislators. However, inviting Independent MLAs while ignoring Congress, which is an alliance partner and a pillar of support to the government, is certainly not in keeping with the spirit of the coalition," the leader said.
The Congress leader pointed out that the party has consistently supported the Omar Abdullah-led government and expected to be treated as a key stakeholder in discussions concerning governance and the functioning of the alliance.
"The Congress is extending full support to the government.
Therefore, there was no reason to exclude the party from such an important meeting," the leader added.
Political observers view the development as potentially embarrassing for the Congress, particularly because Independent legislators supporting the government have been invited despite not being formal constituents of the ruling alliance.
According to sources, the Independent legislators invited to the meeting include Choudhary Akram (Surankote), Pyare Lal Sharma (Inderwal), Rameshwar Singh (Bani), and Muzaffar Iqbal Khan (Thanamandi), all of whom support the NC-led government. Independent MLA from Khour, Satish Sharma, who is a Cabinet minister in the Omar Abdullah government, is also expected to be part of the deliberations.
The meeting assumes significance as it comes against the backdrop of reports of unease among some ruling party legislators over governance-related issues and the performance of certain ministers. The Chief Minister is expected to review the functioning of the government and address concerns raised by legislators.
The exclusion of Congress from the meeting has, however, sparked speculation within political circles about the state of relations between the coalition partners, even though leaders from both parties have so far refrained from making any public comments on the issue. |
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