NC about to fall in delimitation trap as party goes into participation mode

Srinagar: National Conference is all set to announce it’s willingness to participate in the delimitation panel proceedings and the move as such would be a Himalayan climb down of Jammu & Kashmir’s grand old mainstream party from the boycott of earlier meetings of delimitation panel constituted by the incumbent central government for creation of assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies in Jammu & Kashmir after the bifurcation of the erstwhile state into two union territories- Jammu & Kashmir and Ladhak.
A top National Conference leader on conditions of anonymity told Kashmir Horizon “ the party president Dr Farooq Abdullah had solicited views from the members of the central working committee –CWC and the issue was discussed at length at the recently held CWC meeting in Srinagar”. Disclosing that there was a broader consensus in favour of the participation of all the three Lok Sabha members in the meetings of delimitation panel as it’s associate members, the top party leader told Kashmir Horizon “decision to participate in the delimitation panel meetings has been taken to deny BJP an opportunity of imposing it’s own unilateral plan of action on creation of assembly and lok sabha constituencies in Jammu & Kashmir”. He however said “a formal announcement over participation in the delimitation panel meetings will come only after the delimitation panel announces fresh dates for it’s next meeting and as such the timing of the announcement of the party decision depends on the timing of the next meeting of the delimitation panel “. Till now National Conference was a big huddle in the execution of new delimitation initiative as the party with three parliament members represents the entire Kashmir valley in Lok Sabha . It may be recalled here that previously National Conference had boycotted meetings of the delimitation panel with the argument that party does not endorse or accept the constitutional moves of August 5, 2019 taken by the central government on bifurcation of erstwhile state into two union territories and scrapping of Article 370 and Article 35 A. Notably the National Conference is one of the main petitioners challenging the J&K Reorganisation Act 2019 under which the erstwhile J&K state was bifurcated into two union territories and abrogation of article 370 and article 35 A that guaranteed special status to erstwhile J&K state.