14 J&K leaders- Officials have said the Union wants to hold parliamentary elections on Union territory as soon as possible, which are expected to take place either in December or March next year.
New Delhi:14 J&K leaders, including four former chief ministers of the former state, were invited on Saturday to attend a high-level meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the capital Delhi on June 24 . that during this meeting the framework for the holding of the elections of the assembly will be decided there.
These leaders of eight political parties – National Conference (NC), PDP, BJP, Congress, J&K Apni Party, CPI (M), People’s Conference and J&K National Panthers Party were invited to attend the meeting to be held at the residence of the Prime Minister Thursday at 3 p.m. Union Home Secretary Ajay Bhalla invited him by phone.
This will be the first meeting of all political parties in Jammu and Kashmir with the Prime Minister after August 5, 2019, when the Center abolished the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and divided it into two territories of the ‘Union. The former state has been ruled by the Center since November 2018.
Officials have said the Union is keen to hold assembly elections on Union territory as soon as possible, which are expected to be held either in December or March next year, when the Boundaries Commission headed by Judge (ret’d) R Desai should stand. in the coming months. Will complete its task of reprogramming constituencies. The commission was granted a one-year extension in March of this year.
Officials said all leaders have been asked to report negative on COVID-19. Guests include four former chief ministers – Farooq Abdullah of the National Conference and his son Omar Abdullah, top Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad and PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti.
Contacted, Omar Abdullah said he had received the invitation and would follow the party’s instructions. Sources at the National Conference said Farooq Abdullah will hold discussions with party leaders about attending the meeting.
When contacted, PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti said she would discuss within the party on Sunday to decide on the next course of action. Four former chief deputy ministers of the former state – Congresswoman Tara Chand, People’s Conference leader Muzaffar Hussain Baig and BJP leaders Nirmal Singh and Kavinder Gupta were also invited to the meeting.
In addition to this, CPI (M) leader Mohammad Yusuf Tarigami, J&K Apni Party (JKAP) leader Altaf Bukhari, Sajjad Lone of the People’s Conference, J&K Congress leader GA Mir, Ravindra Raina of BJP and leader Panthers Party Bhim Singh were also present at the meeting. was invited to.
Congress and CPI (M) also said they would decide to attend the meeting after consultation with their respective parties. BJP Jammu and Kashmir unit chairman Raina said he was confident all leaders invited to the meeting would participate in “important” deliberations. 14 J&K leaders…..
He said the meeting called by the prime minister was in line with the wishes of the leaders of various political parties who were asking for his time and calling for such a meeting for a long time.
The meeting will be the first such exercise after the Center announced the abrogation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019 and its division into two Union Territories. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and other central leaders are also expected to attend the meeting.
The meeting is the result of informal talks held with all political parties in the territory of the Union to decide on the next course of action, including the holding of parliamentary elections as well as the restoration of the State of Jammu- and-Kashmir.
The Union Minister of the Interior, when presenting the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Bill 2019 to Parliament, assured that the Center would grant full state status to Jammu and Kashmir on time.
The talks take place seven months after the election of the District Development Council in Union Territory. In Zilla Vikas Parishad’s elections held last year, the People’s Alliance for the Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) won 110 of 280 seats ahead of the BJP and its allies and the National Conference came out strong with 67 seats in of the alliance. . The BJP was the largest party with 75 seats.
The PAGD is a six-party coalition group in Jammu and Kashmir that was formed after the Centre’s decisions in August 2019.(14 J&K leaders)
