Vikar Rasool, Tara Chand ‘choose’ to stay away from Parliament gherao protest
Arteev Sharma
Jammu, July 27: The growing internal rift within the Jammu and Kashmir unit of the Congress party has now begun to cast a shadow over its campaign for the restoration of statehood to the region.
Sources in the party told The News Now that senior Congress leaders from J&K had travelled to New Delhi on July 21 to participate in the party’s “Delhi Chalo” campaign and the subsequent “Parliament Gherao” protest scheduled for July 22.
However, a faction of leaders, including former JKPCC president Vikar Rasool Wani and former deputy chief minister Tara Chand, chose to stay away from the protest.
Instead, the group visited Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge to extend birthday greetings on the same day, drawing sharp criticism from within the party.
“Their absence from the Parliament Gherao, reportedly because of the presence of their intra-party rivals, was unfortunate. It has led to accusations of indulging in politics of sycophancy. Factionalism has long hindered effective decision-making in the JKPCC, and the recent turn of events has only worsened the situation. The high command must take immediate corrective measures to contain this growing unrest,” a senior party leader said, requesting anonymity.
“This episode could have been avoided, and unity should have been displayed at such a critical time. Sadly, personal interests took precedence,” the leader said
The leader further said the incident was a clear indication of a “deepening crisis of cohesion” within the J&K Congress, which is struggling to present a “united front” on key issues, including the demand for the restoration of statehood.
“It is quite unfortunate that, despite a shared concern for statehood, our leaders are unable to set aside personal grudges. This disunity is not only disappointing but is also directly weakening the impact of our protests and public outreach,” the leader said, adding “The incident has reignited concerns over the effectiveness of the party’s leadership in J&K”.
Pertinently, the newly-appointed AICC general secretary and In-charge J&K affairs of the party, Dr Syed Naseer Hussain (MP) had recently cautioned Congress cadre against groupism and indiscipline in Jammu and Kashmir. “There is no place for groupism in the party and any such attempt will not be tolerated,” he had said.
The issue of infighting, including recent protests by J&K leaders outside AICC headquarters in New Delhi, had been viewed seriously by party’s high command.
