Kashmiri separatists ask Centre to clarify on talks offer
Srinagar, May 29: The Kashmiri separatist leadership on Tuesday asked the Central government to clear the ambiguity in its offer of dialogue before the separatist leadership deliberates on joining these talks.
A meeting of the Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL), separatist conglomerate headed by Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umer Farooq and Muhammad Yasin Malik, was held at Geelani's uptown Hyderpora residence on Tuesday.
A statement issued by the JRL here said: "The JRL held a detailed meeting and deliberated on the current prevailing political situation in Jammu and Kashmir.
"The JRL while taking stock of the situation said the statements emanating regarding talks in the course of last few days from different people at the helm of affairs in New Delhi are unclear and ambiguous."
It pointed out that Home Minister Rajnath Singh said there should be a dialogue with both Kashmir and Pakistan but added that both parts of Kashmir belong to India while External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj put a rider and said no talks with Pakistan unless terror is stopped.
Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah "gives a new spin by saying that the ceasefire is not for militants but for the people while state police chief issued a statement that the ceasefire has been announced so that the militants come back home".
"All this ambiguity leaves little room to consider the talk about talks seriously with a purpose or warrant a response. The JRL wants to put all this in perspective and once again reiterate our stand.
"Stakes for the people of Kashmir are very high. We have invested heavily in our struggle for right of self-determination and we cannot afford to be part of an ambiguous effort that has no clarity and direction," the statement said.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
