Srinagar, Jul 18 : Leader of the Opposition Sunil Sharma on Saturday dismissed the National Conference’s (NC) planned protest in Delhi as a “political drama” aimed at diverting attention from the ruling party’s “complete failure” in governance.
BJP leader Sunil Sharma alleged that the NC’s agitation on the issue of statehood was a “cover-up” for its unfulfilled promises to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. “They are going to Delhi to put up a show because they have nothing to show on the ground. Electricity, water, roads, schools — they have failed on every front. Now they want to mislead people by raking up old issues,” the BJP leader told news agency Kashmir News Service (KNS).
The senior BJP leader reiterated that the restoration of statehood was his party’s agenda, not the NC’s. “CM Omar Abdullah is going to Delhi to demand statehood because the royal life of the Abdullah family is lacking. But statehood is the agenda of the BJP. We will give it to the people of Jammu and Kashmir, not to the kings of the Abdullah family,” he said.
He further questioned the timing of the protest, saying, “When did they care about statehood? They had promised so many things to the people before coming to power, but where did those promises go? Now they are running to Delhi to hide their failures.”
Referring to the security situation, Sunil Sharma claimed that terrorism in Kashmir was moving towards an end. “Not a single terrorist has been made in Jammu and Kashmir in the last 1.5 to 2 years. This is not a shifting of terrorism; this is a dilution of terrorism. Do you want statehood to be restored so that 250 people can become militants again?” he asked.
He questioned the urgency for statehood, saying, “Do you want statehood to be restored quickly so that 250 people can become militants again? As long as independent agencies of India ensure that a Kashmiri child is not harmed, statehood should not come.” (KNS)
