Lal Singh floats apolitical outfit, but agenda political

Dinesh Manhotra

Tribune News Service

Jammu, July 22

Giving a clear indication of quitting the BJP in near future, former minister and MLA Lal Singh on Sunday formally floated a new apolitical outfit with a clear political agenda.

“We will fight for the rights and pride of the ethnic Dogra minority of J&K to end decades-long discrimination and step-motherly treatment with religious and ethnic minorities of the state,” Lal Singh said while launching the Dogra Swabhiman Sangathan here.

“Jammu and its people have always been neglected for decades by Kashmir-centric politicians and governments but the time has changed now. The Dogras will no more face discrimination,” said the MLA from the Basholi Assembly segment of Kathua district.

Although Lal Singh repeatedly mentioned that his ‘sangathan’ was a non-political group, the agenda announced for the new outfit was political. “There should be constitutional mechanism to ensure rotational chief ministership in J&K to give empowerment to both Jammu and Kashmir regions,” he demanded in the ‘Vision Document’ of his outfit.

As Lal Singh is facing charges of standing in support of accused in the Rasana rape and murder case, he made it a point to ensure participation of good number of Gujjars and Bakerwals during the launch. Notably, the victim in the Rasana case belonged to the Bakerwal community.

In a bid to blunt campaign against him, he said, “priority for the Dogra Swabhiman Sanghathan is communal harmony and peace in the Jammu region.”

“This is people’s sanghathan and I am part of it. I will unite Jammu and fight till our 21-point ‘Vision Document’ is not taken to its logical conclusion,” he said, adding, “We are not dividing the state but we only want that Jammu should get its rights.”

Meanwhile, the ‘Vision Document’ released by Lal Singh’s outfit focused on nationalism, equal opportunity of employment, equal right of education, protection and consumption of natural resources, Dogra art, culture and language, delimitation, rotational chief ministers, separate public service commissions/service selection boards, reservation of economical backwardness and Dogra certificates.

Rebel leader hijacks BJP’s pro-Jammu agenda 

Lal Singh’s decision to float a new outfit is likely to spoil the BJP’s effort to retain both Lok Sabha seats of the Jammu province as during his ongoing campaign he has ‘hijacked’ the party’s pro-Jammu agenda. The three-time MLA from Basholi and two-time LS  member from Udhampur-Doda seat is aggressively raking up emotive issues,  earlier exploited by the BJP in the Jammu region to reap political benefits. Unlike other BJP leaders, Lal Singh has base in Jammu, Kathua, Samba, Reasi and Udhampur districts from where the BJP had taken lead in the 2014 LS polls.