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| | Kamal’s remarks expose chinks in NC-Cong armour | | Barring Taj, stoic silence from Cong | | JAMMU, Jul 2: The additional general secretary and senior leader of National Conference Dr Mustafa Kamal did yet it again!
He exposed the vulnerability of Congress-National Conference alliance, which he chose to describe as, “unfortunate, unholy and an alliance of compulsion.” Not only this, he also bared “chinks” in the armour of strange bed-fellows, much to the glee of political adversaries.
The only consoling factor for the coalition however was- while Dr Kamal spilled beans, senior leaders from both the alliance partners went into “we-care-not” mode.
Particularly surprising was the stoic reaction to his fresh offensive from the ally Congress, though already badly bruised with repeated attacks from Dr Kamal.
At least today, the senior Congress leaders, when contacted, declined to comment on his verbal assault against the party. Only exception was Minister for PHE, Irrigation and Flood Control Taj Mohi-ud-Din, who did talk to a Kashmir based news agency yet even he chose not to react directly.
Obliquely Taj replied to all the prickly issues raised by Dr Kamal in his interview to a local magazine carried by local newspapers today. Yet his response too was measured, cautious without locking horns with NC’s loquacious additional general secretary.
Congress insiders however revealed that generally the party would prefer to adopt ‘wait-n-watch’ policy, for the time being ignoring his usual diatribe and keenly watching as how NC leadership would tackle him to undo the damage.
It is very likely that following a stoic silence, the state party (Congress) unit may react in a day or two, if NC leadership does not make any effort to silence the “Congress heckler” in their flock.
In the meanwhile while talking to KNS today, Taj described restoration of autonomy ‘a closed chapter’ and said there was no need to alter or amend the central laws extended to the state post-1953.
“There is no room for discussion on the issue of autonomy. The matter has been settled long back between the two political stalwarts- Indira Gandhi and Sheikh Abdullah after the 1975 accord,” he added.
Taj said Sheikh Abdullah became the Chief Minister of the state on the basis of the 1975 accord reached between Mirza Afzal Beg and G Parthasarthy.
Dr Kamal had stated that Indira-Sheikh ’75 accord was never implemented and had also blamed Congress for resorting to mischief right from 1953. He had also accused Congress of backstabbing NC leadership twice.
However Taj said, “The question of autonomy was settled for ever and we cannot overrule the agreement endorsed by such great leaders as Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah and Indira Gandhi.”
He also defended the central laws extended to the state after 1953 saying he agreed with D D Thakur report on the issue. “The central laws ensure safety of the people of the state. The authority of Election Commission of India and the Supreme Court of India is necessary to ensure free and fair elections apart from transparent governance in the state,” he said. Taj, while talking to KNS, however conceded that the government could review the laws extended to the state as recommended by the report submitted by the interlocutors appointed by the Government of India on Kashmir.
Taj said Congress party would guarantee the upholding of Article 370 of the Indian Constitution. “I swear by the Constitution of India, of which the Article 370 is a part. Anyone having objections to it can knock the doors of the Supreme Court of India. Congress party manifesto promises the safety of Article 370 and we will stick to it,” he added.
Casting aspersions on the Justice Sagheer Ahmad Report, Taj said there was nothing new in the report. “The Justice Sagheer Working Group has simply submitted the documents prepared by different political parties in the state to the government,” he said adding the Working Group had not come forward with specific recommendations. “The Working Group was authorised to take decisions and come forward with its recommendations, however, it has simply reproduced the documents and inputs provided by different political parties of the state in their original shape. The Working Group has neither delved into the concept of autonomy nor the self rule in its 18 point document,” he said.
Taj said the Cabinet Sub Committee set up to study the implications of the report had submitted its interim report to the cabinet based on the 18 points of the Justice Sagheer WG after evolving consensus.
When asked about the internal differences in the state Congress, the minister said selecting the President of the Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee was the prerogative of the Congress High Command in Delhi.
As far as Dr Kamal’s verbal offensive against Congress was concerned, in the past, this cost him his posts of Additional General Secretary and the Chief Spokesman in 2011, hours after his statement on Rahul Gandhi.
He had stated that Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi had no role in running the Jammu and Kashmir government. His statement was in response to a remark by Congress state chief Saif-ud-Din Soz, who quoted Rahul Gandhi as saying that he was not happy with the governance in Jammu and Kashmir.
Following his decision as the party president, Dr Farooq Abdullah had said he had to take this “difficult decision” because Dr Mustafa Kamal had been making certain statements which were not in tandem with the policies of The National Conference and were against coalition dharma.
“Kamal had been advised to exercise restraint and follow the party policy line on all issues, particularly those pertaining to the policies of the coalition government, relationship with the Congress party, AFSPA and the role of the Army,” Farooq had stated then.
Besides his usual diatribe against Congress, Dr Kamal had earlier embarrassed the coalition government in a major way with his suggestion that the army and Congress were behind some instances of violence, including grenade attacks. He later retracted the statement.
“This is exactly what I don't need,” Omar had responded to his statement while talking to a news channel, pointing out that Dr Kamal was not just a senior party member but also his father's brother, which put him in an “extremely awkward position.”
“I can't tell you the number of times I have requested my father to please tell Dr Mustafa Kamal to think twice before he issues statement,” the Chief Minister had said. “I don't think he needs to start issuing statements about the Army or about my alliance partners. It's not his mandate and it does make life very difficult for me,” Omar had said.
Dr Kamal was appointed as Additional General Secretary and party Chief Spokesman in September 2011 following the political storm that erupted in the state over the mysterious death of a NC activist Haji Yousuf.
After Dr Kamal was elevated to the key positions, he had launched scathing attacks on Army and Congress. Yet following his diatribe against Congress and army, he was asked to step down in October 2011.
Interestingly, he was yet again appointed as the Additional General Secretary in April, 2012.
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