J&K CM Omar Abdullah welcomes questions raised by Supreme Court on the issue of deletion of names from voter lists

STC NEWS DESK
SRINAGAR, OCTOBER 06 (STC): Welcoming the questions raised by the Supreme Court on the issue of deletion of names from voter lists, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said that now it remains to be seen to what extent the Supreme Court directs reforms and redressal in this matter.
He said that the Supreme Court has sought responses from the Election Commission and the Central Government and only after that the situation will become clearer.
Speaking to media persons in Srinagar, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that the Supreme Court’s raising of questions on the issue of deletion of names from voter lists during the Special Intensive Review is an important development.
“It is good that the Supreme Court is now also raising questions on the issue of deletion of names from the voter lists. The court has also sought a response from the Election Commission and the Government of India. Now it remains to be seen to what extent this issue is rectified by the court,” he said and added that this issue has already been raised repeatedly by his party and the opposition, but at that time very few people paid attention to it.
According to him, “We have been raising this issue continuously, but very few people paid attention to it. Now the media has also started talking about this issue.”
The Chief Minister, while rejecting the possibility of implementing a Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in Jammu and Kashmir, said that such a law should be for the entire country and it should be presented in Parliament and passed after a formal debate. He said that until the Uniform Civil Code is implemented uniformly in all parts of the country, it cannot be called “uniform” in the true sense. Omar Abdullah said that UCC will not be implemented in Jammu and Kashmir.
He said, “We will not implement the Uniform Civil Code here. In Bihar too, Nitish Kumar’s party has said that they will not implement it. Similarly, other governments have also said that the Uniform Civil Code will not be implemented in their states.” Omar Abdullah said that such matters should be decided at the national level, not at the state level.
He alleged that instead of bringing the UCC in the form of a central law, due to the lack of requisite numbers in Parliament, attempts are being made to implement it in various states in a phased manner, which according to him is not the right approach.
On the issue of alleged expulsion of Bangladeshi citizens from Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah said that foreigners who have entered India without permission cannot be allowed to stay here illegally. He said that in practice, the presence of these people has not caused any particular problem to Jammu and Kashmir, however, it is also a fact that people who have entered India illegally cannot stay here permanently.
However, the Chief Minister, while describing the issues of Bangladeshi citizens and Rohingya refugees as separate, said that the Rohingya are being unnecessarily targeted. He said that when the Rohingya were expelled from their country, India provided them with shelter and temporary accommodation, with the hope that they would be able to return once the situation improves.
According to Omar Abdullah, the sudden action against them is a matter of concern. Regarding the action against the Rohingya and other foreign nationals, Omar Abdullah clarified that this matter falls under the jurisdiction of the central government. He said that the central government is taking help from the police in this regard, while the police is also not under their direct control.
(Straight Talk Communications)