Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah chaired a meeting of Opposition parties in Jammu on Tuesday and called for a joint protest on October 10 against the “trampling of constitutional rights” of people of the Union Territory.
“We have jointly decided that on October 10 a peaceful protest will be held against the present condition of J&K, how the Constitution has been suspended, and how our rights have been attacked.” Dr. Abdullah, who is also the president of National Conference, said.
The meeting was attended by Jammu-based parties and the constituents of the Peoples Alliance for the Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), an amalgam formed for a joint fight to restore the pre-August 5, 2019 status of J&K. Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti also attended the meeting.
Congress leaders Raman Bhalla and Vikar Rasool; Dogra Sadar Sabha’s Ghulchain Singh Chadak, Panthers Party’s Harsh Dev Singh; United Peace Alliance’s Shahid Saleem, Muslim United Front’s Zaffar Ahmad; Peoples Movement’s Dr. Hussain, Akali Dal’s Narendra Singh; and Mission Statehood president Sunil Dimple also participated in the meeting.
The meeting comes in the backdrop of reports about a likely delay in urban local bodies and panchayat elections in J&K. These elections were scheduled to be held later this year.
The Ghulam Nabi Azad-led Democratic Progressive Azad Party, Sajad Gani Lone’s Peoples Conference and Altaf Bukhari’s J&K Apni Party were not invited for the meeting.
“Farooq Abdullah is a BJP man. He will go with them whenever they will call him,” Ghulam Hassan Mir, a leader of the Apni Party, said.
