AGENCIES / SRINAGAR /JAMMU NEW DELHI
The former Union Minister questioned as to why Malik did not dissolve the House in the last six months after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in June withdrew support to the Mehbooba Mufti-led Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) coalition government.
various Opposition parties today attacked centre and Governor for dissolving Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. The Congress party attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for using Governor Satya Pal Malik to dissolve the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly which it termed “illegal and unconstitutional”.
“The Governor has toyed with the Constitution and it was done at the behest of the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO),” Congress leader Manish Tewari told the media here.
The former Union Minister questioned as to why Malik did not dissolve the House in the last six months after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in June withdrew support to the Mehbooba Mufti-led Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) coalition government.
“For the last five-six months, the BJP tried its best to garner support by indulging in horse trading. But when its conspiracy failed to yield any result, it got the Governor to dissolve the Assembly just after the PDP, National Conference and the Congress staked claim to form the government,” Tewari said.
Earlier in the day former Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram also targeted Malik saying parliamentary democracy was “outdated” for the BJP-appointed Governor.
“As long as no one staked a claim to form government, Jammu and Kashmir Governor was happy to keep the Assembly under suspension. The moment someone staked a claim, he dissolved the Assembly. Parliamentary democracy standing on its head.
“The Westminster model of democracy is outdated. Like in all other matters, it is the Gujarat model that has appealed to the J&K Governor,” Chidambaram tweeted.
The party also ridiculed the Governor’s defence on Wednesday, when he maintained that “the grand alliance” of PDP, National Conference and Congress was an “opportunistic” one. There was a simultaneous outrage against BJP General Secretary Ram Madhav’s comment that that the PDP and the NC were tying up to form government in J&K at Pakistan’s behest. “The INC, National Conference (NC), PDP are terror-friendly and the BJP is anti-terrorist? (I) challenge BJP to name even one leader of consequence martyred in fight against terror anywhere in India and I can name 500 Congress leaders of standing,” said Congress leader Manish Tiwari.
Madhav backtracked on social media after his comment that PDP and NC had acted on “instructions from across the border” provoked anger from all the political players. A furious NC leader and former chief minister Omar Abdullah challenged the BJP leader, “I dare you Ram Madhavji to prove your allegation. You have RAW, NIA and IB at your command (CBI too is your parrot), so have the guts to place evidence in the public domain. Either prove this or be man enough to apologise…” tweeted Abdullah.
Madhav advised Abdullah to “take it in your stride” and that he was not “questioning your patriotism at all. But the sudden love between NC and PDP and the hurry to form government leads to many suspicions and political comment. Not to offend you.”
Abdullah, however, was not amused. “No. Misplaced attempts at humour won’t work. You have claimed my party has been acting at the behest of Pakistan. I dare you to prove it…”
In a dramatic development, Malik late on Wednesday dissolved the Assembly after the three parties staked claim to form the government which was followed by People’s Conference leader Sajad Lone making a rival claim to power with the backing of BJP and rebel PDP MLAs.