By IANS,
Srinagar : Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Saturday accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of “trying to get votes through false propaganda”.
“The BJP leaders say one thing in their closed doors meetings and another in public meetings,” Omar Abdullah told reporters here after a National Conference (NC) and Congress meeting on seat sharing for the Lok Sabha polls.
“They (the BJP leaders) are talking of revoking article 370 of the Constitution, but no central government has the power to revoke this article,” he added.
Reacting to questions about the latest threat perceptions to top politicians and also reports that separatist guerrillas would try and hamper the elections, Omar Abdullah said: “Those who have to vote would do so despite the threats from the militants.
“There is nothing new in the recent advisory we have received from the home ministry. We have reviewed the overall situation in the state with regard to the elections, the annual Amarnath Yatra and the tourist season. We hope to continue the present congenial atmosphere and also hope they (militants) do not disturb the elections.”
NC patron and former chief minister Farooq Abdullah said despite the statements from the BJP and some other parties, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) would form the new government at the centre and Manmohan Singh would be re-elected prime minister of the country.
“The allies are trying to strengthen the UPA and I am sure Manmohan Singh will be the next prime minister of the country,” the senior Abdullah said.
Answering questions about the future of Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi, Farooq Abdullah said: “Yes, one day he will be the prime minister of the country.”
He said the NC-Congress alliance government in the state would surprise its detractors by changing the destiny of the people of the state within the next six years.
Union Water Resources Minister and state Congress president Saifuddin Soz, who also attended the meeting held at the NC patron’s house, said: “The coordination committee would continue to meet in the future. Our objective is to serve the people.
“We discussed the seat sharing proposal for the Ladakh Lok Sabha seat and soon we would reach a consensus that would be in the interests of the people. There is no scope of any dispute on seat sharing between the two parties,” he added.
However, no decision was announced with regard to the Ladakh constituency, where Congress sources say the party wants to field its candidate with the support of the NC.