Srinagar, Sept 10 (SocialNews.XYZ) Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday defended the National Conference (NC) spokesperson and MLA, Tanvir Sadiq's controversial 'Pajama remark' by calling it a historical fact.
Tanvir Sadiq had recently stirred the hornet's nest by saying that it was the NC founder late Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah during whose leadership it became possible for Kashmiris to wear Pajamas.
Speaking to reporters on the 44th death anniversary of Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah on September 8 here, Tanvir Sadiq said till that time an entire 'Mohalla' (locality) had just one Pajama which they would wear by turns.
Speaking to reporters here today, Omar Abdullah said there was no need for Tanvir Sadiq or the NC to apologise for the remark since according to Omar Abdullah the statement was historically accurate.
The Chief Minister told reporters that the poverty and hardships faced by Kashmiris in the past were well documented by historians and were not Tanvir's personal opinion.
"What Tanvir said is historically accurate. He does not need to apologise or clarify what he said," Omar Abdullah said.
He added that Walter Lawrence and several other historians had written about Jammu and Kashmir, particularly about the poverty of Kashmiris and the manner in which people were trapped under the system of landlords.
"People did not have money. Tanvir did not talk about this first. Maybe there is a senior National Conference leader, from our President to General Secretary and others, who did not talk about this," the Chief Minister said.
"There was a time when Kashmiris were so poor that they had to come to the city with their pajamas from the mosque. This is not Tanvir's own thinking. This is a historical fact," he added.
The Chief Minister said Tanvir Sadiq's intention was perhaps to highlight the progress Kashmiris had made from those difficult circumstances, saying people were now educating their children and producing doctors and engineers.
He added that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) had a common agenda in raising the issue.
"Tanvir does not need to apologise for this. Nor does he need to give any clarification. Nor does my party (NC) need to apologise for this. Tanvir did not do anything wrong," he said.
On the Congress objecting to the singing of the full stanzas of Vande Mataram, Omar Abdullah said the Jammu and Kashmir government had to comply with the existing law and statutory obligations.
"We have to follow the law. If Congress comes to power, they can repeal the law. But as long as the law exists, we have to follow it," he added.
Omar Andullah said the government event involving two Governors, the Lieutenant Governor and the Acting Chief Justice of the High Court would necessarily have the National Anthem, while the existing provisions also require the full stanzas of Vande Mataram wherever the National Anthem is played at government functions.
He added that the provision was not limited to Jammu and Kashmir, but applied across the country, including Congress-ruled states.
"If this does not happen, then people who do not stand on full stanzas (of national song), legal action can be taken against them. So what does the Congress want? For Kashmiris to be imprisoned with this excuse," he asked.
Source: IANS
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