Leaders from Jammu and Kashmir's political mainstream met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other Central ministers today (Thursday) in New Delhi, in a first of its kind meeting since the abrogation of the special status of the erstwhile state and its bifurcation into two Union Territories in 2019.
This is the government's first outreach to Jammu and Kashmir's political leadership in almost two years. The meeting was seen as a crucial step towards the return of elected representatives and the holding of Assembly elections followed by the eventual restoration of statehood.
However, the discussion remained broad-based and no concrete timelines came out for the restoration of the democratic process in the Valley. The leaders from the region, however, remained hopeful of future engagements that may help iron out differences further. They said that the discussion was open, positive, and satisfactory.
Here are the 10 key points from the press conference by the Jammu and Kashmir politicians after their meeting with the prime minister.
1.After the over three-hour meeting with Modi, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad said five demands were put forward during their talks.
- Immediate release of political prisoners
- Rehabilitation of Kashmiri Pandits in J&K
- Protection of land rights of the people of J&K
- Conduct Assembly elections to restore democracy
- Restoration of Statehood
2. Government sources told ANI that the main focus of the meeting was to strengthen the democratic process. "The prime minister said that he is fully committed to the democratic process in Jammu and Kashmir. He stressed that holding Assembly elections just like the successful conduct of District Development Council elections are a priority," government sources told the news agency.
3. CNN-News18 citing unnamed sources reported that the Centre told regional parties at their meeting that under the current rule, Jammu and Kashmir saw a lot of positive changes such as block-level elections being held for the first time. Here are some of the other things the Centre told the parties today:
• Block level elections held for the first time in J&K history.
• New level of grassroots democracy district development councils created.
• DDC elections turn out at 51 percent higher than panchayats and Lok Sabha polls.
• Out of the 4,483 sarpanches in duty, 3,650 are elected.
• Over Rs 3,000 crore-worth financial powers handed over to panchayats.
4. Calling the meeting “cordial” and “positive”, People’s Conference leader Muzzafar Hussain Baig said Modi assured that he will do everything to make Jammu and Kashmir a zone of peace rather than conflict. “All leaders demanded statehood. To which the prime minister said the delimitation process should conclude first and then other issues will be addressed. It was a satisfactory meeting. There was complete unanimity for restoring peace in Jammu and Kashmir,” Baig added.
5. The prime minister urged all political parties to participate in the delimitation process. "We have been assured that this is the roadmap towards elections. The prime minister also said that we are committed to the restoration of statehood," Apni Party chief Altaf Bukhari told ANI.
6. Omar Abdullah, vice-president of the National Conference after the meeting said that the parties informed the Centre that they "don't stand with what was done on 5 August 2019." He added, "We're not ready to accept it. But we won't take the law into our hands. We'll fight this in court. We also told prime minister that there's been a breach of trust between the State and Centre and that it's Centre's duty to restore it".
7. Former Jammu and Kashmir deputy chief minister Nirmal Singh said that on the issue of Article 370, Modi said the parties should work within the constitutional framework. Singh said that the prime minister assured a committee to secure the release of political prisoners when the issue was raised by the Gupkar Alliance parties. Union Home Minister Amit shah presented data on the issue in the meeting and said only a dozen prisoners were still in custody.
8. After meeting the leaders from the Valley, ANI citing unnamed sources reported that Modi said that there would be political differences, but everyone should work in the national interest for the benefit of the people. He also there should not be 'Dil ki Duri' and 'Dilli ki Duri'.
9. While the political parties raised the demand for the restoration of the statehood before elections, Union minister Amit Shah said elections can't be held without completing the delimitation exercise, which got delayed because of the pandemic, said Ghulam Nabi Azad.
10. The fact that the meeting went on for over three hours is in itself an indication of the success of the meeting, BJP's Ram Madhav tweeted soon after the conclusion of the meeting.
Conclusion: The meeting came in the backdrop of the Delimitation Commission's Wednesday meeting with the Deputy Commissioners of all Jammu and Kashmir districts to discuss details of existing electoral constituencies. While Modi has reiterated that statehood is the inevitable destination of a political process which took off today on a positive note, a possible roadmap towards that is yet to be ascertained.
Today's dialogue also comes seven months after the District Development Council (DDC) elections in Jammu and Kashmir. The PAGD had surged ahead of the BJP and its allies, including the JKAP, by bagging 110 seats out of 280 with the National Conference emerging stronger with 67 seats within the alliance. The BJP was the single largest party with 75 seats.
Jammu and Kashmir's political mainstream, especially those with a strong base in the Valley, has been critical of successive administrations of the Union Territory for allegedly neglecting the demands of the people. It has raised questions on development initiatives since August 2019.
Several leaders, including the Abdullahs and Mehbooba, were detained after the August 2019 decisions.
With inputs from agencies
June 24, 2021 at 08:24PM
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