National Conference chief and former Jammu & Kashmir chief minister Farooq Abdullah said on Wednesday (August 7) that his party would not enter into an alliance with any other political party when assembly elections are held in the union territory. Election Commission of India (ECI) is due to visit Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday to review preparedness to hold elections.
"We will not enter into any alliance, totally not," Abdullah told reporters.
The ECI team will be led by Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar. The officials will meet representatives of various political parties and receive feedback about conducting the polls.
Abdullah said that the election commission will then consult with the central government and decide when the elections are to be held.
"Whether the dates are announced or not, the EC is coming here. They will talk to everyone, then they will consult the Government of India and finalise the dates. They cannot finalise the dates themselves. Today, everything is done by the Government of India, (Prime Minister Narendra) Modiji and the home minister (Amit Shah)," he added.
Jammu & Kashmir, formerly the only majority Muslim state in India, enjoyed a special status under Article 370 of the constitution. Article 370 was abrogated on August 5, 2019 and the state was bifurcated into two union territories: Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
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Assembly elections have not taken place in Jammu & Kashmir since. As per Supreme Court of India's notice to the ECI, these elections are to be held no later than September 30, 2024.
Revive SAARC in light of Bangladesh crisis: Abdullah
The former J&K CM opined that South Asian Association for Regional Co-operation (SAARC) should be revived in light of the crisis in Bangladesh.
"Bangladesh is a different issue, our country has a different issue. In Bangladesh, (Sheikh) Hasina was pro-India, but the people there were not pro-India. She ran the affairs till she could. Today, India should be ready to deal with dangers," he said.
"Today, none of our neighbours is our friend. We are alone -- be it Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh or Sri Lanka. The regret is that this big brother has miffed the younger brothers," Abdullah said.
The need of the hour is the revival of the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) and India should fulfil its duty as the big brother, he added.
