Democratic Progressive Azad Party chief Ghulam Nabi Azad on Saturday reiterated the demand for elections in Jammu and Kashmir saying they have been waiting for the same since the assembly was dissolved in 2018. “We have been waiting for elections for the last six years after the assembly was dissolved in 2018,” said the former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister speaking to reporters in Srinagar. “Not for one or two years but for 6 years we, and the people of J&K have been waiting for democratic setup to be restored in the state,” he added.
“Democratic setup means elected representatives become MLAs and run the government because in a democracy this work can be done by elected representatives,” he added.
“In India or elsewhere in the world , officers cannot run the government for more than six months,” said the former Congress leader.
On the issue of Uniform Civil Code, the DPAP chief said its implementation is not as easy as abrogation of Article 370. “This concerns all the religions, not only Muslims but Sikh, Christians, tribals, Jains, and Parsis…angering so many religions at the same time will not be good for any government,” he said.
“My advice to this government is that they should never think of taking such a step..." Azad said.
After Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned UCC in one of his recent speeches in Madhya Pradesh, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board has opposed the move. On Thursday, it met with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar and former Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray to discuss the matter.
After the meeting, the official spokesperson of the All India Muslim Personal Law Board Qasim Rasool Ilyas told ABP News that the Congress has assured that the party will take cognisance of their concerns when the UCC will be up for debate in Parliament.