Sajjad Lone questions Farooq Abdullah’s remarks on Article 370

Srinagar, Mar 30 (KMW): Peoples Conference chairman Sajjad Lone has questioned the factual discrepancy of Dr Farooq Abdullah’s remarks regarding upholding Article 370.

According to a statement issued to KMW, he went on to state that it has been the two Delhi pampered parties which have at every juncture of history been instrumental in undermining Kashmiri autonomy and dignity.
Starting right from the Delhi Agreement of 1952 which watered down the autonomous integrity of the ‘Instrument of Accession’ that not only devised only communications, foreign policy and defence to be extended under Indian aegis, but it’s article 7 empowered the Kashmiri’s to maintain complete autonomy from India beyond the aforementioned three spheres.
“Not only did Sheikh Abdullah barter the greater autonomy vested in the terms of the Instrument of Accession but also rejected India’s plea of extending the article of “fundamental human rights” to Kashmir. The subsequent1975 agreement not only accepted the constitutional encroachments of India even over the watered down Delhi Agreement of 1952 but also further helped entrench New Delhi’s hold within Kashmir.”
He said that like the electoral skullduggery of his off-string Farooq Abdullah today, Sheikh Abdullah too in a mode of electoral gimmickry accepted his guilt at a gathering in hazratbal when he declared “Mujhey galti kerney wallon mey likha jaey … nakey gadarron mey ( plea to historians “ I should be included in the list of those who made mistakes and not in the list of traitors).
This in itself is a testimony by the person himself as to his own sense of guilt and wrong doing. Further, reflecting upon the NC’s Autonomy report of 1999 Lone said it was nothing but a blackmailing device on the part of NC to secure more personal and party interests from New Delhi while also keeping New Delhi away from reaching out to the separatists.
Despite being poorly and hurriedly compiled by 1999 it was only presented in state Assembly in July 2000 corresponding with and as an attempt to undermine the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen ceasefire.
“It was later rejected by the centre as a means of calling off NC’s bluff. If the NC felt so strongly about it why didn’t it then recall its support to the Vajpayee government which now Abdullah blames of undermining the report.”
The statement added that it must be recalled that despite his diatribe against Modi today, Farooq Abdullah and NC endorsed Modi’s role in Gujrat carnage of 2002 by staying steadfast with the BJP in government, while other self-respecting secular parties withdrew their support.
Lone went on to state that while Farooq Abdullah may suffer from selective dementia and habitual distortion of facts, he hoped the Kashmiri people have a more robust collective memory and responsibility towards rejecting such parasitical political behavior.
It also has the responsibility of supporting “empowerment driven change”, in contrast to the hollow sloganeering reflecting “continuity driven change”.