Congress a former ally of both National Conference (NC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the two biggest regional political parties of Jammu & Kashmir, has virtually walked out of the peoples’ alliance launched by signatories of Gupkar declaration to carry forward the “Gupkar declaration 2.0” to it’s logical conclusion as the J&K Congress President Gh Ahmad Mir has choosen to cite his personal health issues a reason for skipping the Gupkar declaration attended by all other signatories. Even if the J&K Congress President Gh Ahmad Mir had some pressing health issue due to which he could not attend the Gupkar declaration 2.0 meet, he could have atleast deputed his party’s senior most vice president to attend the meeting. Obviously Mir did skipped Gupkar declaration 2.0 meet not due to his pressing health issue but due to the fear of criticism that is gripping his party over Gupkar declaration 2.0 meet in run up to the crucial assembly elections in Bihar. Interestingly BJP has already dubbed leaders of Gupkar declaration anti-nationals and Congress does not want to faced such a wild allegation on nationalism from BJP in run up to the assembly elections in Bihar. While the veteran Congress leader and former Union Home Minister P.Chidam has openly extended his support to the launch of Peoples’ Alliance and Gupkar Declaration 2.0 meet, the J&K Congress President Gh Ahmad Mir shouldn’t have taken lame excuses to show his inability to attend the meeting or depute his party’s senior vice president to the Gupkar declaration 2.0 meet at least to show solidarity and support to the signatories of Gupkar declaration. Unfortunately the Congress party is suffering from the crisis of credibility in Jammu & Kashmir for the last seventy years because of it’s policy of double standards and double speak on any issue concerning the constitutional position of erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state.
Keeping in view the Congress party’s dismal track record of political deceits and betrayals, the leaders of recently launched Peoples’ Alliance should either seek an assurance from the Congress party’s top leadership over commitment to Gupkar declaration or expel it from the alliance to ensure that the Gupkar declaration does not become a crude joke like autonomy or self rule.
Congress party has a very dismal track record of deserting and betraying even the leaders of the popular governments almost half a dozen times in last seventy years Jammu & Kashmir as this old national party of the country is responsible for undemocratically and unceremoniously pulling down elected governments in the erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state. As such Congress party is responsible for demolishing the bridges of trust between Srinagar and New Delhi. Interestingly even this time the Congress party does not object to withdrawal of statehood and special status to reduce a state to a union territory with no special status but it objects to what it calls “ unconstitutional” route followed by the incumbent central government in downgrading the erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state to two union territories and scrapping Article 370 and Article 35 A on August 5 last year. Keeping in view the Congress party’s dismal track record of political deceits and betrayals, the leaders of recently launched Peoples’ Alliance should either seek an assurance from the Congress party’s top leadership over commitment to Gupkar declaration or expel it from the alliance to ensure that the Gupkar declaration does not become a crude joke like autonomy or self rule.
