New Delhi: The People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) on Monday said assembly elections should be held only after restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir and asked the Bharatiya Janata Party-led central government to honour its commitment made on the floor of Parliament.
The PGAD expressed disappointment over the outcome of the recentlt-held all-party meeting on Jammu and Kashmir chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying there was lack of substantial confidence building measures like release of political and other prisoners.
'As far as the restoration of statehood is concerned, it has been the BJP's commitment on the floor of Parliament and they must honour their word,' alliance spokesperson and Communist Party of India-Marxist leader M Y Tarigami said in a statement.
Tarigami said the assembly election 'must be held only after restoration of full statehood' to Jammu and Kashmir.
"To this end, the PAGD has decided to reach out to other political parties in Jammu and Kashmir with a view to take a common position on the issue," he said.
Tarigami said the confidence building measures (CBMs) would have initiated the much-needed process of reaching out to the people of J-K 'who are the biggest stakeholders and sufferers of the J-K problem'.
All the members of the PAGD expressed their disappointed at the outcome of the Delhi meeting especially at the absence of any CBMs such as releasing political and other prisoners from jails and lack of concrete steps to end the alleged 'atmosphere of suppression' that has 'choked' J-K since 2019, the spokesperson said in a statement.
The PAGD's statement comes a day after the alliance meeting on Sunday under the chairmanship of Farooq Abdullah -- the National Conference president -- at his Gupkar residence in Srinagar.
The meeting was attended by alliance vice-chairperson and People's Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti, Tarigami, NC leader Hasnain Masoodi, Peoples Movement chief Javed Mustafa Mir and Awami National Conference senior vice president Muzaffar Ahmed Shah.
The meeting was called to discuss the all-party meeting chaired by the Prime Minister in Delhi on June 24, the PAGD spokesperson said.
The PAGD said it will fight together using constitutional, legal and political means to reverse the Centre's decision.
'The PAGD reiterated its commitment to fight together to reverse the unconstitutional and unacceptable changes foisted on the people of J-K on 5th August 2019 using all constitutional, legal and political means at its disposal.
'The PAGD's struggle for undoing these changes will continue as long as it takes while striving to achieve this objective as early as possible,' Tarigami said.
—PTI
