CM must weed out radical elements from Party, administration before expecting progress: Chander Mohan Sharma

JAMMU: Senior leader and Incharge of the Namami Gange Campaign and Tawi Andolan, Chander Mohan Sharma, called upon Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to first identify and remove radical elements from his own party as well as from the Union Territory administration before expecting any meaningful progress on governance and public confidence.

Adv. Chander Mohan Sharma, accompanied by Dr. Pardeep Mahotra, Media Incharge, J&K BJP, was addressing a press conference at party headquarters, Trikuta Nagar, Jammu.

Sharma said that such an exercise was a prerequisite for restoring trust and ensuring effective administration. Referring to the recent controversy over the alleged glorification of "villains as heroes" in school textbooks, he claimed that the episode pointed to the presence of "black sheep" within the administrative system. According to him, the incident could well be only "the tip of the iceberg" and warranted a comprehensive review of the entire administrative setup.

He stressed that a thorough scrutiny and intensive investigation of the administration was essential to identify and eliminate elements working against the national interest. Sharma further alleged that instead of extending full cooperation to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha in his efforts to remove supporters and facilitators of terrorism from the administration, the leadership of the National Conference (NC) and the People's Democratic Party (PDP) had repeatedly questioned and opposed such actions.

The senior leader said the time had come for the leadership of both parties to accept that India had moved decisively forward as one united nation and that there was no scope for reviving what he described as outdated political narratives. He asserted that the sooner these parties accepted this reality, the better it would be for the people of Jammu and Kashmir and for their own party workers. He further maintained that concepts such as plebiscite, Azadi, autonomy, self-rule, Article 370 and Article 35A should be consigned to history, and that any glorification of separatism or terrorism had no place in a democratic and progressive society.

Recalling a legal case from the past, Sharma referred to Contempt Petition No. 2 of 1989, titled Chander Mohan Sharma vs. Ghulam Rasool Mattoo and Others, which he had filed before the Jammu and Kashmir High Court. He said the petition was instituted after former Member of Parliament and National Conference leader Ghulam Rasool Mattoo allegedly described the execution of convicted terrorist Maqbool Bhat during a Doordarshan television discussion as the "murder of Maqbool Bhat by the Government of India."

Sharma stated that he was represented in the matter by Advocate P.C. Sharma, while the respondents, including the Director General of Doordarshan, were represented by Advocates A.K. Sahney and D.C. Raina. He added that the matter was disposed of by Hon'ble Justice Sethi, who directed the respondents to refrain from making such statements in future.

Referring to the legacy of Maqbool Sherwani, Sharma observed that Sherwani, who was killed by Pakistani invaders in Baramulla in 1947, was himself a National Conference worker. However, he alleged that the party had never meaningfully commemorated Sherwani's martyrdom or birth anniversary. Instead, he claimed, it was BJP leader Ravinder Raina who had initiated the practice of observing Sherwani's birth anniversary.

Sharma also alleged that while the National Conference continued to observe July 13 as "Martyrs' Day", it had failed to accord due recognition to Sherwani's sacrifice. He further claimed that a park named after Maqbool Sherwani near Canal Head, adjacent to Rajinder Park in Jammu, was demolished during a National Conference government to facilitate other constructions without creating an alternative memorial in his honour. According to Sharma, these developments reflected the priorities and mindset of the party's leadership.