National Conference president Farooq Abdullah said on Sunday that holding the G20 summit in Kashmir will not benefit tourism in the Valley until India and Pakistan resolve the "future" of the Union Territory through dialogue. He also claimed that the absence of an elected government was causing significant losses in Jammu and Kashmir. The NC president was responding to a question about whether the G20 meeting in Srinagar would be beneficial to the union territory.
"The question is whether we will benefit from these countries' tourism arrivals. That cannot happen until the situation here improves, and it will not improve until the two major countries hold talks about how to shape the future of this state," Abdullah was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
"We did. The roads which were in bad shape for many years were repaired. The walls got a fresh coat of paint. The street lights started working. So we did benefit from it," he added.
In response to the lack of an elected government in J&K, Abdullah said: "Democracy is when there is an elected government. One LG and his advisor cannot be responsible for the entire state. Some MLAs are responsible for their respective districts."
"The bureaucracy is unconcerned about these issues because they do not retire until the age of 60. Every five years, an MLA must return to the people. He will not receive votes if he does not work. As a result, elections must be held here," he said.
The Lok Sabha member from Srinagar stated that his party was ready for elections at any time.
Responding to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha's claim that a few parties in Kashmir had previously hijacked elections, Abdullah said, "Don't they have the means to counter it? They can take their case to the Supreme Court or the Election Commission. Indira Gandhi was also deposed (by the High Court). There are alternatives".