Farooq Abdullah only does politics, has no concern for people: Ram Madhav

New Delhi, Sep 9: In a scathing attack on Farooq Abdullah, BJP leader Ram Madhav on Sunday said the National Conference (NC) patron has only done poltics and never made "efforts to ensure democratic rights of the people."

Madhav was reacting to Abdullah's statement on Saturday in which he said that his party will boycott the assembly and parliamentary polls too if the Centre does not take effective steps for protection of Article 35-A.

BJP leader Ram Madhav

"Farooq Abdullah has always done politics and never made efforts to ensure democratic rights of ppl. Now when Modi Ji is trying to do so he is speaking against it. If Farooq Abdullah is objecting to panchayat polls over 35A issue then why did he contest Kargil polls?" Madhav told news agency ANI.

Farooq Abdullah

Abdullah's threat on Saturday came a day after the National Conference said that it will boycott the upcoming local body elections in Jammu and Kashmir over Article 35A, a constitutional provision that defines "permanent residents" of the state.

"We will not only boycott Panchayat elections but also Lok Sabha and assembly elections if the centre doesn't clear its stand on Article 35A and Article 370," Abdullah, a former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir said on Saturday.

Omar Abdullah

Farooq Abdullah's son Omar Abdullah, who is also a former CM of the state, earlier said the Centre must clarity its stand on Article 35 A.

"It is now for the central government to clarify where it stands with regard to Art 35-A. It's not enough to use Panchayat & Municipal elections simply to delay proceedings in court," Omar had tweeted.

The Supreme Court

Farooq Abdullah had last Sunday (September 2) denounced Additional Solicitor General of India (ASG) for saying in the Supreme Court that "there is an aspect of gender discrimination" in Article 35A of the Constitution. He asked the government of J&K to take immediate steps to ensure that the state does not facilitate the striking down of Article 35-A by its subtle support and admissions made before the Supreme Court.

Last Friday (August 31), the Supreme Court deferred till January next year the crucial hearing on pleas challenging the constitutional validity of Article 35 A, which provides special rights and privileges to the natives of Jammu and Kashmir, after the Centre and the state said that polls to local bodies polls there would go on till December. Earlier, the separatists of Kashmir had called for a boycott of the panchayat and municipal elections scheduled in the state of J&K from October 1 onwards. The Joint Resistance Leadership said that the government of India wanted to thrust the elections on the people by deploying additional forces.