Congress keen to delay J&K polls

New Delhi: Faced with the prospect of a rout in Jammu and Kashmir in case of timely election, the Congress may request the Government to delay the poll. The party would take a stand on the matter after its working committee meets on September 13 here.

Jammu happy, Kashmir upset at Amarnath accord

“After the Amarnath row, the situation in the State is not conducive for election as separatists are on the rise in the Valley and Jammu is communally charged,” a senior leader of the Congress told Sify.com.

Complete coverage of Amarnath Land transfer row

Since the Assembly election is due in the State this November, the party may request the Government to delay it, although for the record the Congress has said it would abide by the EC’s decision. Congress sources said the Amarnath land row had given a boost to the separatist elements in the Valley and they may call for a poll boycott.

Comment: Next steps for Kashmir

The PDP and the National Conference are also wary of an early poll because they are finding themselves increasingly alienated in the wake of the resurgence of the Hurriyat Conference. In Jammu, where much of the anger was against the Congress over the Amarnath row, the grand old party wants to join hands with Sri Amarnath Sanghrash Samiti and wants to squarely blame the PDP for the entire mess.

Last week, senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel met Makhan Lal Fotedar and asked him to woo Samiti leaders. On Wednesday, the Election Commission had held consultations with the Union Home Secretary and top officials of the Jammu and Kashmir Government to assess the feasibility of conducting poll in the State.

Images: Shrine row strains Jammu

In this connection, State Director General of Police Kuldeep Khoda and Chief Secretary S S Kapoor met the poll panel to discuss the law and order situation in the State. During the meeting, both the top State officials conveyed the present situation in the State in the aftermath of violent incidents triggered over the land transfer to Amarnath Shrine Board.

The State delegation informed the Commission that while the situation in Jammu had returned to normalcy, the situation in Kashmir Valley is still volatile. The Commission has been entrusted with the task of holding election, which in its normal course should have been held before November 20, the date when the Assembly's term expires. But the Assembly was dissolved following a political crisis in the wake of withdrawal of support by the PDP, an important constituent of the Congress-led alliance government in the State.

Jammu Inc loses billions due to Amarnath land row

IANS adds: The CWC meet on Saturday, September 13, is significant since the highest decision making body of the party is meeting for the first time after the Manmohan Singh led-United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government won the July 22 trust vote.

"After the trust vote, we are into a new alliance with the Samajwadi party (SP) and before the next general elections several things have to be assessed. It will be more of an input session where party representatives from various states will inform the party high command about the situation and response of people to various schemes of UPA government in their states," Congress spokesperson Shakeel Ahmed said.

Besides the elections to the Lok Sabha, the lower house of parliament, the CWC will also discuss strategy for assembly polls in other states - Delhi, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Mizoram. Other issues likely to figure at the meeting include violence in Orissa and Bihar floods.

More offbeat stories | Science updates | Travel stories | Health facts