NEW DELHI: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah has taken a U-turn from his previous softening stance and declared that there was no question of his party the National Conference (NC), participating in State elections unless the Center conceded some political autonomy.
“As the President of the National Conference, let me tell you that my party will not participate in these elections unless you give us autonomy. They can push through any kind of elections they want, but we won’t “take part in it,” said Dr. Abdullah. Although the NC leader had initially ruled out participation in polls when he returned from abroad, in the hope that a political process would get started in the strife-tom border State “last year, he had subsequently been attempting to activate party cadres in Jammu and was softening his stand clearly indicating he was willing to contest the elections.
His changed attitude was pronounced following several statements by Union Home Minister S.B. Chavan to the effect that if the NC were to stick to its stand, it would “miss the bus,” as had happened to the Akalis after their boycott of the 1992 Punjab Assembly polls.
The NC leader, who had recently returned from Geneva, where he was a member of India’s delegation at the United Nations Human Rights Com- mission, was in a particularly reflective mood, especially in the light of the recent series of electoral debacles faced by the ruling Congress.
“We (the delegation at Geneva) watched the Russians sign away on Chechnya without so much as a peep.” Dr. Abdullah said. “A time will come when international pressure will build up and put us in the same position unless an initiative is taken in Kashmir.” “After talking to all these people, they should work out something for Kashmir, and give it to the people of Kashmir,” the NC leader said.
Dr. Abdullah reiterated his demand that Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao convene a meeting of J&K leaders to initiate a political process, “with- out losing anytime.”
Dr. Abdullah told the meeting that what was required in Kashmir was the restoration of autonomy. He, how- ever, strongly opposed any trifurcation of the State.
The former Chief Minister also felt that unless secessionists accepted Kashmir’s accession to India, there should be no negotiations with them. He stressed that the solution to the Kashmir problem lay within the Indian Union.
Kashmiri Pandits.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 24, 1995
