Aazan Manzoor
Srinagar, Nov 4 (JKNS): A day after Agha Ruhullah announced his resignation from the National Conference and relinquished his Lok Sabha membership, senior party leaders on Wednesday launched a strong defence of the party leadership, alleging that the BJP had ultimately benefited from his departure and describing the developments as a possible success of what they termed ‘Operation Lotus’ in Kashmir.
Addressing a press conference at the National Conference headquarters, Nawai Subah, Srinagar, as per news agency JKNS, MLA Salman Ali Sagar and MLA Sajad Shaheen said Ruhullah’s decision was an individual political choice and would neither weaken the party nor undermine its organisational strength.
Salman Ali Sagar said the party respected every individual’s democratic right to question leadership and take independent political decisions. However, he questioned the manner in which Ruhullah announced his resignation and raised concerns over references made to the party’s leadership and political legacy.
He said the issues being raised by Ruhullah, including Article 370 and Article 35A, should not be used as a pretext to justify his departure, adding that the National Conference had maintained its political position on these issues.
Taking a sharp dig at the developments, Sagar said he believed the BJP had succeeded in its efforts to push Ruhullah out of the National Conference. He alleged that the political developments had ultimately served the BJP’s agenda in Kashmir, adding that the party had managed to achieve what he described as a success of ‘Operation Lotus’.
Sagar further questioned Ruhullah’s decision to part ways with the party, saying that instead of resigning, he should have raised his concerns within the organisational structure and engaged with party stakeholders.
He said Ruhullah had not maintained regular engagement with the party organisation and questioned how many MLAs and senior leaders he had consulted before taking such a major decision.
Referring to the National Conference’s long political history, Salman said the party was not so weak that the departure of one individual could undermine its foundations. He added that the party had faced political challenges and pressure for decades but continued to retain its organisational strength.
He also said that the National Conference had received the public mandate to politically empower people and communities, rather than serve the interests of any particular individual.
Meanwhile, Sajad Shaheen termed the developments unfortunate, saying that every individual had the democratic right to express disagreement with the party leadership, but the manner in which the issue was handled was regrettable.
He said Agha Ruhullah’s political journey and association with the National Conference could not be separated from the party’s history, adding that his departure should not be viewed as a setback to the organisation.
The leaders maintained that political differences and allegations would continue, but the National Conference would move forward with its organisational and political agenda. (JKNS)
