Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge addresses public meeting for Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections | (Photo: PTI)
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said on Saturday that the priority of the Congress is to restore the status of Jammu and Kashmir, adding that the State has never been converted into a Union Territory before.
“The state has never been converted into a Union Territory. We ask, why didn’t you give statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, you have all the power, then why are they doing it?” Congress president Kharge asked the BJP, while addressing a press conference in Jammu.
“…We have announced seven guarantees. Our priority is to restore citizenship to J&K. The second guarantee is to provide a health insurance scheme that will provide Rs 25 lakh to every family in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
Further detailing the Congress Party’s promises for Jammu and Kashmir, he said, “A monthly benefit of Rs 3,000 will be given to women heads of families. An interest-free loan of Rs 5 lakh will also be given to women… their rights as enshrined in the Constitution… 100,000 jobs are vacant if we are entering the force and we will inform them immediately…”
He accused the BJP of not doing anything for the Union Territory.
“BJP said they will provide 500,000 jobs but they have been here for 5 years but they have not done anything,” said Kharge.
When asked about BJP leader Devinder Rana’s statement about NC leader Omar Abdullah meeting with BJP he said that was over now we are together.
Meanwhile, a voter turnout of 61.13 pc was registered in the first phase of voting in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections, which were held in 24 constituencies in seven states.
According to Election Commission data, the voting percentage was 61.13 percent till 11.30 pm.
Voting began in 24 seats at 7 am today, including 16 seats in Kashmir region and eight seats in Jammu region. Voting was peaceful.
Kishtwar district recorded the highest voter turnout at 80.14 percent followed by Ramban at 70.55 percent, Doda at 71.34 percent, Kulgam at 62.60 percent, Anantnag at 57.84 percent and Shopian at 55.96 percent.
Jammu and Kashmir is witnessing an interesting contest with several political parties and independents in the fray. The National Congress and the Congress are in alliance, although they are also in friendly competition for some seats.
This is the first election in Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370. The leaders are holding busy campaigns to boost the prospects of the candidates.
Voting for the second and third phase in J&K will be held on September 25 and October 1, respectively. The votes will be counted on October 8.
(Only the headline and image for this report may have been reused by Business Standard staff; other content is automatically generated from the trade feed.)
First published: Sep 21 2024 | 4:38 PM IST