NC slams Mehbooba Mufti for visiting AIIMS to ‘review’ construction

Srinagar, Jun 6: The ruling National Conference (NC) on Saturday termed as “unfortunate” the visit of former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti to the upcoming AIIMS at Awantipora in Pulwama district, saying it set a wrong precedent.

“It is unfortunate that a former CM has given an opportunity to unelected people to take their MLAs to chair a meeting. This sets a very wrong precedent,” NC chief spokesperson Tanvir Sadiq told reporters here.

On Friday, Mehbooba visited the under-construction AIIMS at Awantipora to “understand” the progress on the construction.

Sadiq said NC president Farooq Abdullah and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, when they were not in power, never took a review meeting like the PDP president.

“They (the PDP) have given a way to the RSS and other people to take a review meeting of any institution by just taking their MLAs,” Sadiq said. There is a “larger picture” behind this, he said.

“When the NC passed the autonomy resolution in 1999, a new party emerged which was named as the PDP. Today, when we 50 MLAs decided to go to Delhi to appeal for the restoration of statehood and our rights, suddenly, unelected people go and take a review of a centrally-funded institution.

“So, it clearly tells you about the connection, and wherefrom they got the dictation,” he said.

“This precedence is unfortunate and is very wrong for a democratic setup,” Sadiq said. The party spokesperson said Omar Abdullah recently reviewed the progress of the institute and ensured that the stopped work was resumed.

Meanwhile, People’s Conference chief and Handwara MLA Sajad Lone termed Mehbooba’s visit as an “unconstitutional trespass”, and demanded she admit her visit was “an error of judgement.”

Lone warned that Mehbooba’s act, carried out without her holding any elected office, set a “dangerous precedent that could open the floodgates for other non-elected individuals to assume similar institutional authority in J-K.”

What stops an RSS or BJP non-MLA functionary from doing the same, “especially when they can point to 28 MLAs against the PDP’s four,” he said.

“What stops Dr Farooq Abdullah Sahib, (Ghulam Nabi) Azad Sahib, or (BJP leader) Nirmal Singh Sahib from chairing similar meetings? The list can go on and on,” Lone said.

He said Mehbooba effectively opened the door for all sorts of “politically undesirable species” with her move.

Lone also criticised the chief minister, saying he was “partly responsible for the situation.”

“Had the CM not set his ministers against the opposition MLAs and eroded their authority, this event of constitutional impropriety may not have taken place,” the PC chief said.

Lone also pre-empted the argument that Union Health Minister JP Nadda’s involvement or approval lent legitimacy to Mehbooba’s chairing of the meeting.

“Nadda Sahib is the honourable Health Minister of India. But he does not have the power to redesign constitutional roles,” Lone said.

Mehbooba on Saturday said she spoke to Nadda to expedite the construction work. (PTI)