Bhaderwah, Jul 25 : National Conference General Secretary Haji Ali Mohammed Sagar on Thursday urged the Centre to open up channels of dialogue with all the stakeholders for resolving internal and external dimensions of Jammu and Kashmir imbroglio, saying this is imperative for lasting peace in the country and the region.
“Jammu and Kashmir is a political problem and it has to be resolved politically”, Sagar said while addressing workers and functionaries at a day-long National Conference convention here this afternoon.
Sagar hoped that a meaningful dialogue will be initiated earnestly with sincere intent of outreaching to the people that will not only end the trust deficit but make all the difference on ground zero. He said the urges and aspiration of the people are to be respected which including respecting the special states of the state as well. He said Jammu and Kashmir should not be treated as any other state, given its unique position in the Constitution of India. Any attempt of diluting this status will be detrimental to national interest, he cautioned.
The General Secretary referred to frequent statements being made by responsible leaders of the ruling party at the Centre and said these were creating apprehensions in the minds of the people, which are needed to be removed by maintaining restrain. He said the people of the State were feeling threatened by politics of hate and communal divide being thrust upon them.
“The people of all the three regions and faiths are genuinely concerned at the attempts being made to generate regional divide and engineer communal polarization for ulterior political motives”, he said, adding that this gap is needed to be bridged by strengthening mutual understanding and cementing the bonds of amity and brotherhood.
Speaking on the occasion, Additional General Secretary Dr Sheikh Mustafa Kamaal traced the genesis of Kashmir problem in breaking of promises made by New Delhi time and again. He said instead of respecting the sentiments of the people by undoing the wrongs committed over the decades, attempts are being made to further alienate the people of the state.
Dr Kamaal hoped that the Centre will appreciate the need of reaching out to the alienated people of Jammu and Kashmir and take corrective measures by restoring democracy and addressing the political problems.
Addressing the convention, Provincial President Devender Singh Rana reiterated the principle stand of National Conference to uphold the pluralistic and secular ethos of the state, especially on the face of continuous attempts being made by reactionary and divisive forces, who seem to be hell bent on dividing the people on regional and religious lines.
“People of Jammu and Kashmir have kept the flag of amity and brotherhood aloft during most testing times of history and will do so in future as well, no matter how hostile the conditions are made”, Rana said while reiterating the party’s resolve to maintain unity and tranquility, the corner stone of National Conference ethos.
District President Doda and former minister Khalid Najeeb Suharwardhy also addressed the convention and exhorted workers to intensify their mass contact programme across the district, identify problems faced to the people and seek their redressal at appropriate levels. He said the state is facing numerous challenges, especially on the development front that has pushed the people virtually to wall.
“The governance deficit during the past few years have accumulated the problems of people”, he said and sought immediate corrective measures for putting the state on the track of development.
The other speakers dwelt in detail the obtaining political scenario across the state and expressed concern over the attempts being made to promote political uncertainty. They said political instability is not in the larger interests of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, who were feeling sense of deprivation.
Those who addressed the convention besides Provincial President Youth National Conference Ajaz Jan included senior leader Mehboob Iqbal, former MP Sheikh Abdul Rehman, senior leaders Qazi Jalal-ud-Din, Dr Shahid Rehman Moghul, Abdul Qayoom Bhagwan, Ch Shabir Ganie, Rafiq Ahmed Shah, Irshad Laway, Ashraf Kelu, Showkat Malik, Arif Najar, Ayub Najar, Hafiz Butt, Khan Mohammed, Sajjad Mir, Rafiq Bhagwan, Rajinder Dimple and others.
