Kashmiri legislator, Sajad Gani Lone has submitted a resolution in the Jammu Kashmir Legislative Assembly secretariat condemning the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A in the strongest terms. The resolution demands the restoration of the pre-5 August 2019 constitutional position of Jammu Kashmir.
Sources said that Lone, who has criticised the National Conference-led government’s resolution from the previous session as ambiguous and insufficiently clear in rejecting the 5 August 2019 decisions, has submitted a fresh resolution addressing the matter.
“The resolution brought by Lone condemns all actions of 5 August 2019 in the strongest terms and seeks the restoration of the pre-5 August 2019 constitutional position,” sources confirmed, adding that the document has been formally submitted in the Legislative Assembly secretariat.
In the last assembly session, the National Conference-led government had submitted a “mild-worded” resolution concerning J&K’s special status. “This Legislative Assembly reaffirms the importance of the special status and constitutional guarantees, which safeguarded the identity, culture, and rights of the people of J&K, and expresses concern over their unilateral removal,” the NC-led resolution read.
It further emphasised that any restoration process “must safeguard both national unity and the legitimate aspirations of the people of J&K.”
While Kashmir-based opposition parties, including PDP and PC, accused NC of submitting a “watered-down” resolution, the Congress criticised the resolution for only seeking statehood restoration without addressing the reinstatement of Article 370. (KNO)