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Farooq Abdullah Says Courage Is Growing Amid Election Protests
Farooq Abdullah spoke at a gathering about concerns over voter lists.
He said some people had been wrongly removed from the lists and that this was unfair.
He accused the Election Commission of targeting Muslims, but the report presents this as his claim.
People had recently protested in Mumbai and Delhi over the election chief and a voter-list exercise.
Abdullah said the Election Commission should be independent from the government.
He also criticized how the chief election commissioner is chosen.
He praised people who are speaking up.
He said their courage could lead to change.
Farooq Abdullah criticized alleged voter-roll deletions and said no one has the right to remove eligible citizens from voter lists.
He accused the Election Commission of selectively striking Muslims from the rolls, citing lawyer Kapil Sibal as an example.
Abdullah said protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the SIR exercise had taken place in Mumbai and Delhi.
He argued that the Election Commission should have been made fully autonomous and criticized the process for selecting the chief election commissioner.
Abdullah said public resistance was growing and predicted that political change would come.
- Who
- National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah spoke about the Election Commission, voter-roll deletions and protests.
- What
- Abdullah criticized alleged voter-list deletions and the Election Commission, and said public courage and political change were emerging.
- Where
- At the fifth ‘Halla Bolle’ conclave; the report identifies the location only as “here.”
- When
- October 4; the report does not specify the year.
- Why
- Abdullah was responding to questions about the SIR exercise, alleged voter-roll deletions and protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Key facts
- Speaker
- Farooq Abdullah, National Conference president
- Event
- Fifth ‘Halla Bolle’ conclave
- Date
- October 4; year not stated
- Main issue
- Alleged voter-roll deletions and the SIR exercise
- Election official criticized
- Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar
- Protest locations mentioned
- Mumbai and Delhi
- Abdullah’s proposed institutional change
- Make the Election Commission fully autonomous
Quotes
Farooq Abdullah
National Conference president and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister
“They selectively targeted and struck off Muslims. Look at the extent of it, even an eminent lawyer like Kapil Sibal was removed from the list. How many were struck off. Because their objective is: ‘We have to stay in power until eternity, and to do that, we need people who will do our bidding’.”
theprint.in
“Courage is beginning to emerge among our people. Change will come. I am telling you, whether I am alive or dead, change is on the way. That wind has started blowing, whereby people’s authority will again emerge.”
theprint.in
Sources
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