Congress passes Azfal Guru test in J&K House

Congress managed to sail through one of its biggest test over the sensitive Afzal Guru issue in the J&K Legislative Assembly on Monday.

Sources said J&K Congress leaders were jittery when the adjournment motion was submitted in the assembly by the PDP.  Since it was under Congress-led UPA government that Guru was executed, the state unit leaders wanted to play in such a manner that neither their party bosses are embarrassed nor their support base (mostly in the areas which saw protests over Guru hanging) is compromised with.

Therefore the Congress MLAs tactically chose to remain silent when NC and PDP leaders were slugging it out in the House over the Afzal Guru issue, sources said. None of the MLAs of Congress, which is the ruling alliance partner along with NC, spoke on the Guru issue in the House on Monday.

It was mostly left to PDP president Mehbooba Mufti and J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah, his close aide Nasir Aslam Wani besides lone CPIM MLA Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami to slug it out on the Afzal Guru issue in the House.

“Yes, my government imposed restriction. People had to face difficulties, newspapers did not hit stalls but we saved the bloodshed and safeguarded the lives. It was the prime concern and main objective before me after the hanging of Afzal Guru… You (PDP) however wanted to gain benefits out of bloodshed. Your trait is to utilize these situations for your interests”, Omar said while winding up the discussions.

Earlier PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti hit out at the state government for not acting timely (to protect Afzal Guru).  "Afzal Guru's life could have been saved if Omar government had acted on time. Punjab and Tamil Nadu could save the lives of the convicts but Omar Abdullah's government did nothing", she said.

BJP, Panthers Party and breakaway faction of BJP legislators gave a new twist when they created ruckus demanding the discussions on the killing of two cops in Handwara on Saturday. Panthers Party, BJP and breakaway BJP faction leaders gave an adjournment motion for debating the issue.

Minister of state for home Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo said cops were armed with non-lethal weapons and militants took advantage of the crowded and busy place to kill the two constables.