Cong seeks clarity from PDP, BJP

Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 10

Amid the ongoing uncertainty around government formation in Jammu and Kashmir, the Congress is adopting a wait-and-watch stand before strategising on current political developments.

Ahead of the meeting of state Congress leaders with vice-president Rahul Gandhi tomorrow, the party today said it wanted immediate clarity from the BJP and PDP on what they planned to do about the prevailing governance vacuum in the state.

Congress general secretary in charge of Jammu and Kashmir affairs Ambika Soni said, “The PDP and BJP had staked claim for government formation after they got the mandate. Now, the PDP is demanding assurances from the BJP on commonly agreed on agenda for governance. It appears that the BJP is reneging on some promises made to the PDP. The Congress wants to know what these promises are.”

Asked if the Congress favoured fresh elections, Soni said the Congress would firm up its stand once the PDP and BJP spelt out who the culprit behind the delayed decision making was. She added that a lot would hinge on the political inputs state leaders provided to Rahul Gandhi tomorrow.

“We discussed the state’s political situation at length earlier. Tomorrow, our state leaders will meet the Congress vice-president to apprise him of the situation. We will take a position after that,” said Soni.

On a query about whether the Congress could in any way offer to form the government in the state or be a part of a larger secular coalition, Soni replied in the negative.

“The stand of the Congress is clear. We are in the opposition in Jammu and Kashmir. We have 12 MLAs and are not in a position to form the government. Before the PDP-BJP government was formed, we had proposed a secular coalition, but that was under different circumstances,” she said.

“Recently, when Congress president Sonia Gandhi went to offer her condolences to PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti after the demise of Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, we had said her visit was not political. All we are trying to point out is the PDP and BJP were tasked by people to form the government. Now, they are betraying people’s mandate. We have the right to know who the real culprit behind this betrayal is,” said Soni.