Srinagar, 02 Oct (KNS) : The Jammu and Kashmir National Conference General Secretary and MLA Khanyar Haji Ali Muhammad Sagar Friday said that restoration of statehood is essential to empower the elected democratic government with effective authority, ensure administrative accountability and make it directly answerable to the people.

In a statement issued, He said the existing administrative arrangement has vested extraordinary powers in the bureaucracy, resulting at times in situations where the bureaucracy appears to be attempting to give precedence to its own views over the decisions of the elected government and the elected Assembly.

Sagar said that the objections and communications recently made by senior government officials regarding the Assembly resolution on restoration of statehood, including references to earlier Assembly resolutions, constitute a matter of serious concern. He said the situation highlights the fundamental reality that statehood is not merely an administrative status but an important instrument of democratic accountability. Once statehood is restored, the elected government will have a more effective constitutional and administrative framework to hold the administration accountable to the people and the elected House.

He said the people of Jammu and Kashmir have elected their government through their vote, and therefore the administration must remain subject to that democratic mandate.Click Here To Follow Our WhatsApp Channel

He said retaining references in the recent Assembly resolution to the Autonomy Resolution of June 26, 2000, and the November 6, 2024 resolution concerning restoration of special status, is an important reminder that these demands remain part of the National Conference's political position.

Sagar said that the mistakes and political compromises of the PDP had weakened the people of Jammu and Kashmir to such an extent that even an elected government is today facing extraordinary bureaucratic influence in administrative affairs. He termed this a serious concern for the democratic system and said that a lasting solution lies in a clear demarcation of powers and restoration of statehood.

The National Conference General Secretary also criticised the BJP over its opposition to the statehood resolution, saying that if the BJP genuinely supports restoration of statehood, it should have presented a clear and unambiguous position in support of the demand inside the Assembly. He said the opposition to the resolution and walkout by BJP members during the recent proceedings had brought the party's contradictory position on the issue before the public.(KNS)