BJP takes U-turn on state holiday demand

Dinesh Manhotra

Tribune News Service

Jammu, October 23

Following its failure to convince its coalition partner, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), to declare a state holiday on October 26, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has taken a U-turn on this emotive issue.

The saffron party has abandoned its previous stand and distanced itself from the demand to declare a holiday on Accession Day. “We had never raised the demand to declare a holiday on accession day,” said Ashok Koul, state BJP general secretary.

He said the party was against announcing more holidays as it would affect functioning of the government. He said the BJP would celebrate Accession Day in a big way.

For the past many years, the BJP had been demanding declaration of a state holiday on October 26. BJP leaders had, on record, raised this demand earlier, but the party had taken a U-turn now. Till recently, all BJP leaders had been demanding in a chorus that October 26 should be declared as a gazetted holiday across the state.

The proposal had been made by the BJP when it became a part of the government last year. Separatist groups in the state had been observing October 26 as a black day.

On October 26, 1947, the then ruler of the state, Maharaja Hari Singh, signed the Instrument of Accession to make Kashmir a part of India. Accused of diluting its core agenda for the sake of running a government in alliance with the PDP, the BJP had raked up the issue last year after becoming a partner in the government.

Meanwhile, to ensure that programmes to celebrate accession day were a success, state BJP general secretary Pawan Khajuria chaired a meeting to finalise arrangements and allot work to party leaders.

Speaking at the meeting, he said besides organising a seminar at the Trikuta Nagar office, BJP activists would illuminate all rotaries and hoist the Tricolour to mark the day.

Every mandal and district team had been directed to hold colourful programmes to highlight the historic and legal facts related to accession of the state with the Indian Union.

Panthers Party slams BJP

With BJP taking a U-turn on its decade old demand of declaring October 26 as a gazetted holiday, opposition groups have taunted the saffron party for abandoning its nationalist agenda after attaining power in the state. “The saffron party has succumbed to the diktats of the Kashmiri leaders and is playing a second fiddle only to retain its role as a junior partner in PDP-led government,” Panthers Party chairman Harsh Dev Singh said. “The BJP has jettisoned its core philosophy and forgotten its promises made to the people of the Jammu region for fulfilling their aspirations,” he said, adding, “BJP being a equal partner in the coalition government must declare the revered day as a public holiday and officially hoist national flags with full state honours at every tehsil and district headquarters to commemorate the Accession Day.”