Jammu’s interest sacrosanct: Rana
Jammu, June 21, 2021: National Conference Provincial President Mr Devender Singh Rana today termed the Jammu interest as sacrosanct and close to the hearts of the people, irrespective of caste, creed and religion, who, he said, were assimilative in character and strong votaries for dignity and equality of all the regions and sub-regions of Jammu and Kashmir with nobody nurturing feeling of discrimination or domination.
Replying to questions of media persons, who sought his response to the upcoming All Party Meet with the Prime Minister on Thursday, Mr Rana said the Jammu region is proud of its spirit of togetherness and deep bonding between the people of all the faiths and the regions and sub-regions.
To a question on the aspirations and expectation of the Jammu region with the proposed talks, Mr Rana quipped that the people want peace, progress, development and a genuine political process leading to a mechanism for responsive and accountable governance. He agreed to a reporter that participatory democracy had no alternative in a democratic polity and hoped this will not lose the sight of respective leadership.
When asked as to what would be Jammu’s agenda for the meeting, the Provincial President said this region should not be seen in isolation or as a separate entity since the people here believe in the singular entity of the state—the status which he hoped would be restored soon, which has its distinct urges and aspirations.
“As a citizen of this great nation, we crave for democracy to flourish in this part of the country as well with the people enjoying their distinct rights on jobs and lands’ which actually is the proud legacy of the Dogra Maharajas”, he said, elaborating that the accumulated problems of the people cannot be put under the carpet for long. These need to be addressed in a democratic spirit, he added.
On a volley of questions over the political developments of 2019, Mr Rana said the National Conference leadership is well placed to discuss whenever discussions are held. The decision about all this will be taken by the leadership which is currently under the process of consultation with a cross section of political thought. He said the Jammu leaders of the party would be conferring with the President Dr Farooq Abdullah on Wednesday as per the schedule of the leadership.
To a question about the future of Jammu and Kashmir, Mr Rana said that it continues to be a shining jewel in the crown of India. He hoped the consultative mechanism would lead to lasting peace and prosperity in this part of the country.
