How an Independent MLA put all major J&K parties in a fix

When the J&K Assembly convenes for the first time after the poll verdict on Wednesday, it will begin with an issue that can not only strain the fragile PDP-BJP alliance but also make things difficult for all major political groups, especially PDP.

Engineer Rashid, who represents Langate constituency, has submitted a resolution seeking the house to resolve that “mortal remains of late Afzal Guru who was hanged in Tihar jail be returned to his family on humanitarian ground so they can perform his last rights according to religious obligations”. Rashid said he wants the house to pass the resolution. “Whatever happens in the house would show the true face of these political parties to the people. If PDP and Congress backtrack from their promise, it will expose their duplicity and hypocrisy,” he added.

Rashid’s resolution appears to be a political hot potato. Two years after his secret hanging and burial in Tihar, parliament attack convict Guru has become a contentious issue in J&K’s politics. A change in stance on Guru’s hanging and demand for the return of his mortal remains has determined the result of the polls twice within a month. Both times, Rashid forced Congress and PDP to issue signed statements saying that Guru’s hanging was a “travesty of justice” and that they supported “return of the mortal remains of Guru to is family”.

Rashid who was assistant engineer in J&K’s construction corporation, resigned from his job four days before filing a form to contest Assembly polls in 2008. Known to be a maverick, he belongs to a remote village and has been at the forefront of a campaign to end “forced labour” by the Army in his native place. Unlike most legislators in Kashmir, he does not have police security.

Rashid had introduced a resolution in the Assembly in 2011 seeking clemency for Guru, which couldn’t succeed because no party supported him. “I wanted to tell BJP government the return of Guru’s mortal remains is an issue and Kashmiris will not forget it,” Rashid told The Sunday Express. “I also wanted Congress and PDP to accept they committed a mistake by not supporting my resolution on clemency.”

He added, “I had met Mufti sahib (Mufti Mohammad Sayeed) and he had promised me PDP will support the resolution. Next day, they didn’t support me.” He also claimed the Congress was equally responsible for Guru’s hanging. “I voted for Ghulam Nabi Azad in the recent Rajya Sabha elections only after Congress accepted the mistake of its government at the Centre,” he said.

Rashid’s vote was again in demand when the PDP-BJP alliance was pitted against the Congress-NC combine during the recent polls for Legislative Council. “I was first approached by Omar Abdullah… When we met, I told him I will not vote for his candidates this time,” Rashid said. “Then Altaf sahib (PDP minister Altaf Bukhari) and Nayeem sahib (PDP minister Nayeem Akhtar) came to me and said Mufti sahib wanted to speak to me regarding my support for their candidate… My precondition for a vote was to make them realise their mistake in Guru’s case,” he said. “He (Mufti) agreed and that’s why the PDP issued a statement”.

Hours ahead of the elections, PDP had issued a statement saying Guru’s hanging was a “travesty of justice”.

Rashid said he would keep pushing for the issue. The Independent MLA has been taking up controversial issues earlier as well. Recalling his own struggle, Rashid said, “The entire male population of 24 villages from Kargam to Nowgam in Mawar area were taken by the Army for a humiliating forced labour for 13 years. I was one of them.”

When the Assembly convenes, PDP, Congress and NC will all be in a fix on how to deal with Rashid’s resolution. The BJP is vehemently opposed to even a mention of Guru in the house and if PDP allows a vote on the resolution and votes in favour, it could turn into a major controversy that may threaten the alliance. If PDP goes with BJP and doesn’t allow the resolution, it would not only be seen as a U-turn but also a surrender to the BJP in its constituency in Kashmir. The Congress, too, is in a similar boat because the party’s leader of opposition was elected only after the party supported Rashid’s demand. The NC too will face a tricky situation. But if it supports the resolution and PDP opposes it, it may earn them political brownie points back home.

Source:: Indian Express