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| Cong leaders given 15-day ultimatum to end infighting, maintain discipline | | |  Early Times Report
Jammu, June 9: The Congress high command has reportedly issued a stern warning to senior leaders of its Jammu and Kashmir unit, directing them to stop publicly attacking one another and restore discipline within the party within 15 days.
The warning came during a meeting held in New Delhi on Monday, where five senior Congress leaders from Jammu and Kashmir were summoned by the party leadership in an effort to end the growing factionalism within the unit. The leaders included AICC General Secretary and Congress Legislature Party leader in the J&K Assembly Ghulam Ahmad Mir, Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee (JKPCC) president Tariq Hamid Karra, JKPCC Working President Raman Bhalla, former JKPCC president Vikar Rasool Wani, and former Deputy Chief Minister Tara Chand.
Although Rajya Sabha member and AICC General Secretary in charge of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, Dr. Syed Naseer Hussain, described the meeting as a routine discussion on organisational matters and political developments, sources said the high command took a serious view of the public sparring among senior leaders and delivered a strong message on party discipline.
According to highly placed sources, the nearly two-hour-long meeting concluded with clear instructions to all leaders to refrain from making public statements against fellow party members and to raise grievances only through internal party forums.
"The leadership has made it clear that indiscipline will not be tolerated. Leaders have been told to avoid crossing the line and to maintain organisational discipline at all costs," a source said.
Sources further revealed that the high command has given the warring factions a 15-day window to mend differences and restore normalcy within the party. Any leader found violating party discipline or continuing public attacks against colleagues could face disciplinary action, they added.
The Congress leadership is understood to have taken particular note of the recent remarks made by former JKPCC president and Congress Working Committee (CWC) member Vikar Rasool Wani, who has openly criticised incumbent J&K Congress chief Tariq Hamid Karra.
Addressing a public rally in Khour on May 22, Wani launched a sharp attack on Karra, accusing him of pursuing a "separatist agenda" and questioning his ideological commitment to the Congress party. Referring to Karra's political past, Wani alleged that some leaders now occupying influential positions within the party had earlier supported policies inconsistent with the Congress party's nationalist ideology.
"They are the same people who had moved resolutions in the Legislative Assembly of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir seeking the introduction of Pakistani currency alongside Indian currency," Wani had alleged during the rally.
The remarks further deepened the internal rift within the party and prompted intervention by the central leadership.
Meanwhile, Dr. Naseer Hussain maintained that the meeting primarily focused on organisational restructuring and the prevailing political situation in Jammu and Kashmir.
"The entire senior leadership of Jammu and Kashmir was invited to discuss ongoing political developments and the recently concluded organisational restructuring," he told reporters after the meeting.
He said the issue of restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir also figured prominently in the discussions.
"We discussed the issue of statehood, which the Congress party has consistently championed while advocating for the rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. We have organised protests across districts and held a major demonstration at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on this issue," Hussain said.
He noted that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi had also written to the Prime Minister, urging the restoration of statehood in accordance with the aspirations of the people.
"The absence of statehood is creating numerous administrative difficulties. Development activities have slowed down, while the bureaucracy, police, and security apparatus remain under the control of the Lieutenant Governor. Every major file has to go through the Lieutenant Governor's office," he said.
"We want Jammu and Kashmir to function like other states, with a properly empowered elected government and administrative structure, so that governance is carried out by representatives chosen by the people rather than by an unelected administration," he added.
The meeting is being viewed as a significant attempt by the Congress leadership to contain growing factionalism in its Jammu and Kashmir unit ahead of crucial political developments in the Union Territory. |
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