State BJP lambasted the Congress and National Conference for politicizing Maharaja’s Hari Singh’s birth anniversary. BJP questioned the opportunist Congress, National Conference and other political parties for failing to declare September 23, the birth anniversary Maharaja Hari Singh, as a public holiday when in power since 1947. Congress and NC have ruled the state right till 2014 but these parties never ever commemorated the last ruler Maharaja Hari Singh birth anniversary and his contribution to the development of J&K. In fact NC under Sheikh Mohd. Abdullah and Congress under Jawahar Lal Nehru conspired to keep Maharaja Hari Singh out of J&K, after the accession of the state with India.
It was the BJP that got the resolution moved by the grandson of ex-Maharaja a BJP legislator Ajatshatru Singh in the Upper House of Jammu and Kashmir Legislature in January this year for declaring Maharaja’s Hari Singh’s birth anniversary a holiday. Few other politicians, whose members were earlier in the Congress and later shared power between 2002 and 2005 never moved a resolution for declaring Maharaja’s Hari Singh’s birth anniversary as a holiday. Congress and NC have lost plot and are bereft of any constructive narrative. These political parties are not able to digest the developmental agenda of the BJP under which premier national level educational namely Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Indian Institute of Technology(IIT), All India Institute of Medical Sciences(AIIMS), and others have been sanctioned, out these IIT and IIM stated functioning. Congress and NC did not establish a medical college at Jammu till early 1970s, and no engineering college was established in the Jammu region. These parties instead of opening new institutes of higher education closed the only agriculture college of Jammu region at RS Pura in 1960s and shifted it to Kashmir and winded up Ayurvedic college in 1975. It was BJP’s commitment that Ayurvedic college has been reopened at Jammu. These parties wanted to keep Jammu region educationally backward.
It is for the first time in J&K history that neither the Congress nor the NC are in power, thus these parties are unable play role of constructive opposition. These parties have not yet digested the defeat suffered in 2014 state elections. NC , the party responsible for flight of Maharaja from the state, is finding virtue in the state subject law enacted by the Maharaja. Congress which umpteen times came to power by winning from the Jammu region never commemorated Maharaja’s Hari Singh’s birth anniversary not to speak of declaring it a holiday. Both NC and Congress are dynastic parties, and they commemorated their dynasties whether naming institutes or commemorating the birth or death anniversaries. NC changed the name of first agricultural university, which was originally to be named after G.M. Sadiq, and named it after Sheikh Mohamad Abdullah, and the height of travesty is that Jammu agricultural university was also named after Sheikh Abdullah and none from Congress and other parties from Jammu protested this dynastic mind set of NC. BJP lambasted these parties for the sheer opportunistic lust for power and dynastic nepotism. BJP is the party that celebrated accession day every year, installed Maharaja Hari Singh’s statute at Tawi bridge when Kavinder Gupta was the mayor of Jammu and is making Jammu a educational hub, said Dr Narinder Singh General Secretary BJP. He castigated NC and Congress for politicizing Maharaja’s Hari Singh’s legacy, who was a role model and epitome of development in J&K. He said BJP is committed for pursuing the agenda of development and preserving the legacy of Maharaja’s Hari Singh.
