‘INDIA bloc has nothing to do with Cong’s vote chori claims’
Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday distanced himself from the “vote chori” issue raised by the Congress and said the “INDIA bloc has got nothing to do with it”.
His remarks came a day after top Congress leaders attacked the BJP and the election commissioners at a ‘Vote Chor Gaddi Chhod’ rally in the national capital, alleging that “vote chori” is in the ruling party’s DNA and its leaders were “gaddar” who were conspiring to take away voting rights of people and should be removed from power.
Abdullah’s National Conference is a constituent of the opposition INDIA bloc. The Congress is the largest party in the coalition in terms of the number of opposition MPs in the Lok Sabha.
Asked to comment on the issue of “vote chori” and alleged electoral irregularities being highlighted by the Congress, Abdullah said: “The INDIA bloc has got nothing to do with it. Every political party is at liberty to set its own agenda. The Congress has made ‘vote chori’ and SIR as its main issues. Who are we to tell them otherwise?”
The Congress has claimed that it has collected around six crore signatures against “vote theft” and will present the same to the President of India.
Meanwhile, Abdullah on Monday said the power projects under execution in the Union territory are construction works of national importance and law enforcement agencies should take action against anyone obstructing those.
His remarks came a couple of days after a senior officer associated with the construction of the 850-MW Ratle Hydroelectric Power Project in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kishtwar district accused a local BJP MLA of interfering in the works, and warned that continued disruptions could force the company to pull out of the project. “There should be no (political) interference and (if there is any) it should be viewed very seriously,” Abdullah said.
On December 4, Joint Chief Operating Officer of Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited (MEIL), Harpal Singh, claimed that certain politicians and their local supporters, who are neither employees nor workers of the project, attempted to pressure and threaten project officers to fulfil illegitimate demands.
