Interview Some Bjp Leaders Also Want J K Statehood Restored

The demand for the restoration of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir is no longer just the National Conference’s (NC) demand. While the INDIA block stands united on this, senior voices within the BJP also acknowledge that the time is ripe for J&K’s statehood,” Choudhary Mohammad Ramzan, Rajya Sabha MP and House Leader of the NC, told Hindustan Times in an interview. Edited excerpts:

Do you think your Parliament protest on August 5 will yield results, given CM Omar Abdullah’s statement that Articles 370 and 35A won’t return under BJP rule?

On Wednesday, we held a protest to mark August 5, 2019. On this day, our special status was abrogated along with our constitutional rights. Our state was downgraded to a union territory (UT). This is the first time in India where a state has been downgraded to a UT, while UTs are usually upgraded to states.

In the 17th century, J&K was a powerful kingdom under Yousuf Shah Chak, who twice defeated the Mughals. Today, it has been reduced from a state to a union territory. We reminded the Centre to honour its promise and restore statehood.

Are you getting support from all INDIA block partners in the Parliament for statehood and Article 370?

The INDIA block partners, of which Congress is a major party along with TMC, CPI, CPI(M), Samajwadi Party and other constituents, supported us. Before August 5, I wrote to all the alliance constituents seeking their support and conveyed to them how August 5 was a “black day” for us. They agreed that this was a genuine demand and assured support. They all joined us in our protest. I would like to thank them, on behalf of my party president Farooq Abdullah and CM Omar Abdullah, for their support inside and outside the Parliament.

How hopeful are you that statehood will return during NC’s tenure?

Are back-channel talks going on with the Centre on this issue?

Maybe talks are going on. In the BJP, there are many senior leaders who say the time is ripe for the return of J&K’s statehood. In private conversations, many BJP leaders tell us that the moment is perfect for the return of statehood to J&K. All opposition parties support the restoration of statehood. When I spoke in the Parliament earlier this week about statehood, some BJP members came and met me outside and said they were very happy that I raised this, and that it is a genuine demand.

Are you open to the formation of a People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD)-type alliance for statehood restoration?

Every party other than the NC has been rejected by the people of J&K in the assembly elections. NC secured a majority and our party is pursuing statehood and Article 370 at every forum and level.

Why has NC been unable to fulfill the promises made in the polls, especially on the issue of reservations, even though the government has completed almost two years?

We have never been silent on statehood and Article 370. It was also in our manifesto. Our UT doesn’t have many resources, but things are happening step by step. When we came to power, we didn’t have money to pay salaries. Our CM then met the Union finance minister and got additional funds for salaries. Ours is a resource-challenged region. Still, we have three and a half years left. What we promised in our manifesto will be done before our current term ends. On reservation, the CM formed a cabinet sub-committee which submitted its report. The cabinet approved it and sent it to the LG. We are waiting for approval; only then can it be implemented.

Even your MP from Srinagar, Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, is saying that NC has failed. Is he still with NC?

He is still part of the NC as he has not given his resignation from the party.

J&K People’s Conference (JKPC) president and legislator Sajjad Lone says that NC isn’t allowing him to work in Handwara where you lost the election. Is that correct?

I don’t think Sajjad has done any big work in Handwara. Under him, Handwara neither got new roads, water supply schemes, nor big developmental projects. Last time he became the assembly member by default, as some officers played a crucial role in his victory, and that too by a few hundred votes.

Is Bilal Lone’s becoming part of mainstream politics a threat to NC in Kupwara?

Bilal Lone shunning separatist politics and joining mainstream politics is a welcome step. However, he still has to answer the public about those who were killed in the name of separatist politics. Even while in the separatist camp, Bilal Lone always used to help his brother during elections. For the NC, he is not a threat, as we know their politics at every level.