ID :
40498
Wed, 01/14/2009 - 09:13
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/40498
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KASHMIR-FAROOQ
Srinagar, Jan 13 (PTI) The ruling National Conference Tuesday named patron Farooq Abdullah as the party's President, replacing his son Omar Abdullah, who became the chief minister of the India's northern most state of Jammu and Kashmir on January five following assembly elections in the state.
The party's highest decision making body, the working
committee, unanimously passed the proposal to name the 73-year
old veteran politician and former state chief minister as the
party's President in a meeting here Tuesday.
Veteran National Conference leader Sharifuddin Shariq
proposed the name of Farooq for the post while provincial
president Mehboob Beg seconded it, a spokesman of the party
told PTI.
He said most of the members of the working committee
including newly elected Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA)
from Kulgam, Sakina Itoo, Abdul Rashid Shaheen, Member of
Parliament from Baramulla and general secretary of the party
Sheikh Nazir Ahmed were present at the meeting.
Farooq, who had been party president even earlier, had
handed over the reins of the party to son Omar on the eve of
the assembly elections in 2002.
Farooq was first elected to the post of President of
National Conference in 1981 when his father, Sheikh Mohammad
Abdullah, stepped down as head of the organization.
Talking to reporters, Farooq said he took over as
party chief to "relieve" his chief minister-son Omar Abdullah
from additional responsibilities of party work.
"Omar has the gigantic task of taking Jammu and
Kashmir on the road to development and progress. As such, it
was imperative to relieve him of responsibilities relating to
party work," Farooq said.
He said the organisational elections of the party will
be held shortly. Elections for district presidents will be
held soon in a bid to strengthen the organisation at the grass
roots level, he added.
"Wherever our party has failed in the recent assembly
elections, we have to know the reasons to prepare ourselves
for the parliamentary elections," Abdullah said.
The party won 28 seats, the same as it had in the 2002
elections.
He said the party intends to restore the headquarters
of the party, Mujahid Manzil, in interior city which was
shunned by the party in the wake of eruption of militancy over
two decades ago.
"We will restore the pristine glory of the Mujahid
Manzil and use it as our party headquarters as the sentiments
of the people are attached to it," he said adding the party
proposes to revive the old tradition of "meeting the people on
each Friday" to know their problems and try to mitigate them.
Mujahid Manzil, the fortress of mujahideen, had served
as the hotbed of Kashmiri politics during the freedom
movement. It also remained the hub of Kashmiri politics during
National Conference's struggle against Dogra autocracy and its
subsequent political activities between 1953 to 1990.
Located in downtown Srinagar, the erstwhile NC
headquarters was set ablaze in 1990 by suspected militants,
forcing the party to shift its main office to the high
security Nawai Subah complex in the city.
Farooq said the NC-Congress coalition government's
priority is to tackle the growing unemployment and speed up
development and promote tourism.
To a question about trade between Jammu and Kashmir
and Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir (POK) through the
Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road, the former chief minister said
such trade would be further strengthened and the ultimate aim
was to have trade with Central Asian countries.
He said there was no possibility of war between India
and Pakistan in the wake of the Mumbai terror attack since
"war is not going to address the problem. The issue could be
resolved through dialogue."
Terming the Kashmir issue as an "unhealed wound",
Farooq said the people of Kashmir have faced a lot of misery
over the past six decades.
"We will work for harmonious relations between India
and Pakistan so that the issue is resolved through dialogue,"
he said.
He said as far as his party is concerned, the
restoration of autonomy was the best solution to the Kashmir
problem. However, he said his party will endorse any other
better solution if it meets the wishes and aspirations of the
people. PTI AMS
The party's highest decision making body, the working
committee, unanimously passed the proposal to name the 73-year
old veteran politician and former state chief minister as the
party's President in a meeting here Tuesday.
Veteran National Conference leader Sharifuddin Shariq
proposed the name of Farooq for the post while provincial
president Mehboob Beg seconded it, a spokesman of the party
told PTI.
He said most of the members of the working committee
including newly elected Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA)
from Kulgam, Sakina Itoo, Abdul Rashid Shaheen, Member of
Parliament from Baramulla and general secretary of the party
Sheikh Nazir Ahmed were present at the meeting.
Farooq, who had been party president even earlier, had
handed over the reins of the party to son Omar on the eve of
the assembly elections in 2002.
Farooq was first elected to the post of President of
National Conference in 1981 when his father, Sheikh Mohammad
Abdullah, stepped down as head of the organization.
Talking to reporters, Farooq said he took over as
party chief to "relieve" his chief minister-son Omar Abdullah
from additional responsibilities of party work.
"Omar has the gigantic task of taking Jammu and
Kashmir on the road to development and progress. As such, it
was imperative to relieve him of responsibilities relating to
party work," Farooq said.
He said the organisational elections of the party will
be held shortly. Elections for district presidents will be
held soon in a bid to strengthen the organisation at the grass
roots level, he added.
"Wherever our party has failed in the recent assembly
elections, we have to know the reasons to prepare ourselves
for the parliamentary elections," Abdullah said.
The party won 28 seats, the same as it had in the 2002
elections.
He said the party intends to restore the headquarters
of the party, Mujahid Manzil, in interior city which was
shunned by the party in the wake of eruption of militancy over
two decades ago.
"We will restore the pristine glory of the Mujahid
Manzil and use it as our party headquarters as the sentiments
of the people are attached to it," he said adding the party
proposes to revive the old tradition of "meeting the people on
each Friday" to know their problems and try to mitigate them.
Mujahid Manzil, the fortress of mujahideen, had served
as the hotbed of Kashmiri politics during the freedom
movement. It also remained the hub of Kashmiri politics during
National Conference's struggle against Dogra autocracy and its
subsequent political activities between 1953 to 1990.
Located in downtown Srinagar, the erstwhile NC
headquarters was set ablaze in 1990 by suspected militants,
forcing the party to shift its main office to the high
security Nawai Subah complex in the city.
Farooq said the NC-Congress coalition government's
priority is to tackle the growing unemployment and speed up
development and promote tourism.
To a question about trade between Jammu and Kashmir
and Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir (POK) through the
Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road, the former chief minister said
such trade would be further strengthened and the ultimate aim
was to have trade with Central Asian countries.
He said there was no possibility of war between India
and Pakistan in the wake of the Mumbai terror attack since
"war is not going to address the problem. The issue could be
resolved through dialogue."
Terming the Kashmir issue as an "unhealed wound",
Farooq said the people of Kashmir have faced a lot of misery
over the past six decades.
"We will work for harmonious relations between India
and Pakistan so that the issue is resolved through dialogue,"
he said.
He said as far as his party is concerned, the
restoration of autonomy was the best solution to the Kashmir
problem. However, he said his party will endorse any other
better solution if it meets the wishes and aspirations of the
people. PTI AMS
