Kamal has lost mental balance and needs psychiatric consultation
SRINAGAR: Accusing people in his close circle of misleading Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, National Conference Member Parliament, Gulam Nabi Ratanpuri, Friday claimed Omar is kept in dark about the real issues of people and situation in the state.
I have already taken up the matter with Dr Farooq Abdullah and apprised him about how the Chief Minister was being misled. I myself tried to talk to the CM about it but he does not listen to me, said Ratanpuri in an interview with KNS.
A former advisor of the CM has been hell bent upon misguiding him. He is the Narinder Modi of National Conference and is responsible for floating stories in the media against party leaders. I have told them that such tactics were sending wrong signals to the party cadres. Some leaders have even been accused in media of having property in foreign cities like Dubai to blackmail and pressurize them, he added.
He said the National Conference lacks a clear cut vision for solution of the Kashmir issue. We had the autonomy resolution but as of now it stands nowhere. The party has no stand on resolution of this critical issue. In June 2010 I attended a working committee meeting of the party and informed them that the feedback from people was not good. I had suggested that we need to rethink our strategy as the party was losing peoples confidence but the leaders neither listened to me nor did anyone support me, Ratanpuri claimed.
Terming as non-sensical the statement of Party Additional General Secretary, Dr Mustafa Kamal, calling for his resignation from the party, Ratanpuri said Kamal had no authority to call for his resignation.
As per NC constitution there is no post of Additional General secretary. He has no right to ask me to resign. He has lost his mental balance and needs psychiatric consultation, said an agitated Ratanpuri adding He is desperate to become a minister and if he is given a portfolio in the cabinet, he will stop issuing erratic statements day in a day out.
In response to a question whether his visit to Hurriyat (G) Chairman Syed Ali Geelani was against party discipline, he said: My mother is the same age as Geelani Sahab. We have people always attending to her and it was my duty to see if Geelani Sahab was facing any problems. It has nothing to do with politics, he claimed.
What party discipline are you talking about? The party does not follow any principles. There is no constitution and major decisions are taken without following any rules. Even the CM is being put in dark on critical issues of public interest, he added.
He said the National Conference Party should feel ashamed of the statement of Dr Mustafa Kamal against Syed Ali Geelani. Geelani has a role of his own like Sheikh Muhammad Abdullah had. I would not have responded to him but since he has also spoken against Geelani Sahab who is a leader in his own right, I had to respond, he said.
He said many NC workers had congratulated him for his efforts to meet Syed Ali Geelani. No body from the party talked to me regarding meeting Geelani Sahab. However, party workers told me that they have been able to hold their heads high after I met him.
The NC Rajya Sabha Member ruled out the possibility of resigning from the party or membership of the Parliament. I have done nothing wrong. I am not afraid of anyone. I will not remain silent whether anyone likes it or dislikes it. I am not worried about anyone going against me, he announced. (KNS)
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group: Join Now
Be Part of Quality Journalism |
Quality journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce and despite all the hardships we still do it. Our reporters and editors are working overtime in Kashmir and beyond to cover what you care about, break big stories, and expose injustices that can change lives. Today more people are reading Kashmir Observer than ever, but only a handful are paying while advertising revenues are falling fast. |
| ACT NOW |
| MONTHLY | Rs 100 |  |
| YEARLY | Rs 1000 | |
| LIFETIME | Rs 10000 | |
