JAMMU — Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary on Wednesday said the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir would help the government work independently and effectively, and asked why the Centre has not honoured the statehood promise when it has fulfilled several others.
Choudhary reiterated that the ruling National Conference would stage a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on July 20 to press the Centre to fulfil its promise of restoring statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.
He said the party would urge Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to honour the assurance given to the people of Jammu and Kashmir before the 2024 assembly elections.
“We consider it our responsibility, and that is why we are going to Jantar Mantar on the 20th. There, we will appeal to the prime minister and the Union home minister to fulfil the promise they made to us before the elections,” he told reporters in the Nowshera area of Rajouri district.
Choudhary said the restoration of statehood will help the government effectively address hardships faced by the people.
“Many commitments have been fulfilled, but why has the promise of statehood not been met? Restore Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood so that the government can function independently and effectively address the problems and hardships faced by the people,” he added.
The deputy chief minister said that statehood was not a political demand aimed at benefitting the Omar Abdullah-led government but one essential for governance and development.
“Today, I am the deputy chief minister and Omar Abdullah is the chief minister. We are already in office because the people elected us. We want to deliver for the people. There is unemployment in every household, yet we cannot even appoint a single daily wager,” he said.
Targeting the BJP, Choudhary said the party had repeatedly promised to restore Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood but had failed to do so even 18 months after the formation of the elected government.
“The BJP keeps making statements every day and levels allegations against the National Conference. We want to ask the BJP whether it was not their promise to restore statehood. They ruled Jammu and Kashmir along with the PDP for 11 to 12 years. If they question us over the regularisation of daily wagers, they should explain why they failed to regularise them during their tenure,” he said.
Choudhary said Jammu and Kashmir receives financial allocations in accordance with its Union Territory status despite having the developmental needs of a full-fledged state.
“Our requirements are those of a state, but the funding we receive is that of a Union Territory. How can we meet the expenditure? Jammu and Kashmir earlier had the status of a state, and even today its needs are those of a state,” he said.
Alleging irregularities in the implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission in the past, Choudhary claimed that plastic pipes had been used in place of iron pipes in certain projects and urged journalists to question those responsible.
Refuting BJP’s allegations that the National Conference made backdoor appointments, he alleged that such appointments were made during the previous BJP-PDP dispensation in institutions such as the Jammu and Kashmir Bank, the Sports Council and the Tourism Department.
“Outsourcing is not government recruitment. It is a system under which contractors supply manpower, and workers remain without job security. This culture of outsourcing was introduced by the BJP and the PDP,” he alleged.
Calling upon journalists and the people of Jammu and Kashmir to raise their voice in support of statehood, Choudhary said its restoration was a collective responsibility and was necessary to enable the elected government to effectively address public issues and accelerate development. — (PTI)