Unlike previous elections, Sikhs are free to vote : APSCC

‘All successive regimes betrayed our trust’

5 Dariya News

Srinagar 30-Mar-2017

All Parties Sikh Coordination Committee (APSCC) on Thursday said that unlike previous elections, the Sikh community wouldn’t support any party or individual in the parliamentary by-polls for Anantnag and Srinagar seats, slated to be held in next month.Addressing a news conference here at a local hotel, the APSCC chairman, Jagmohan Singh Raina said, “This time, we are not going to support any party or any individual as all the successive regimes have betrayed the trust of Sikh community so far. It is upto the people belonging to Sikh community whether they boycott or to cast their ballots.”He said that in the previous elections, they have supported the political parties as they had promised them of fulfilling their demands of granting them minority status in the Valley.“All the successive regimes including NC, Congress and PDP has failed to fulfill their promises done with the Sikh community but unfortunately after assuming the chair, they failed to fulfill the promises,” Raina said, adding that in its election manifesto for 2014 assembly elections, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had promised that they would give minority status to Sikhs in Jammu & Kashmir.

“However, the party forgot this promise and despite being in power for the past couple of years PDP along with its coalition partner Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has taken no step to grant minority status to Sikhs of the state. The extension of National Commission for Minority Act to the state as promised by PDP has not been done so far much to the disappointment of Sikh community,” he added.He said that at the time of by-polls now, the political parties both in the power and outside are trying to befool the Sikhs by promising moon and stars. “All the mainstream parties have so far failed to come up to the expectations of the Sikh community in the state,” he added.APSCC chairman added that in the past NC and Congress ditched the Sikh community by not accepting the demands of the community. “As on date there is no difference between mainstream parties like PDP, BJP, NC and Congress when it comes to the Sikh community and the problems faced by the community members,” he added.“Since many of the PDP members won elections on basis of Sikh votes it is important that these legislators resign if they have some moral ground. Many of these legislators should thank the Sikh voters since they became ministers in the present government. Some of the seats from which PDP won were traditionally bastions of NC and it was due to the Sikh voters that PDP members emerged victorious,” he added.It is worth to mention here that besides Raina, other members of APSCC Sant Singh, Karan Singh (Retd. Tehsildar), Dr. Joginder Singh Shaan, Indumeet Singh, Devinder Singh, Gurdayal Singh, Tarlok Singh (Babu) and Popinder Singh and others were present on the occasion. (KNS)