People rejected Mandir-Masjid politics: Mehbooba Mufti on poll results
Srinagar, Dec 11: The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Tuesday said the results in the assembly polls to five states have shown that political awakening is on the rise in the country as people have rejected the communal politics.
The Congress was on Tuesday set to wrest Rajasthan and Chattisgarh from the BJP which was trailing marginally in Madhya Pradesh in a cliffhanger while the TRS stormed back to power in Telangana and the MNF dislodged the Congress in Mizoram.
"People rejected Mandir-Masjid politics, results show political awakening on rise in India," the PDP quoted its president Mehbooba Mufti as saying on its Twitter handle.
She was referring to the loss of BJP, which was an ally of the PDP in Jammu and Kashmir government till June this year, in the assembly polls in five states.
"Clearly the mood of the nation rejects the brazen attempts of polarising the society, rejects those who promise in words but plot in action, rejects those furthering their politics by pitting the people of one community against the other," it added.
However, National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah has so far refrained from a direct comment on the outcome of the assembly polls in the states of Chattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan and Telangana.
With BJP and Congress locked in a neck and neck fight in Madhya Pradesh, Omar said the smaller parties will be a happy lot.
"'Others' in Madhya Pradesh will be a happy lot at the moment," he tweeted.
"This is the most fun I've had on counting day in a long time. It helps that I'm not fighting elections in any of the 5 states," he said in another tweet.
Omar said while it was "even-steven" in Madhya Pradesh but BJP has not given up hope of forming the government there.
"It's even-steven in MP & from what I hear the BJP hasn't given up the hope of forming a government there," he said.
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Women ought to have been given more seats by Congress in Assembly polls: Satheesan
Kochi (PTI): Congress leader V D Satheesan on Saturday agreed that women ought to have been given more seats in the upcoming Assembly polls.
The Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Kerala Assembly said that the party wanted to give more seats to women in the Assembly polls.
"We wanted to give more seats. Even I am not satisfied with that issue. It (seats given) was not enough," he told reporters at Paravoor here.
His response comes a day after Congress national spokesperson Shama Mohamed expressed dissatisfaction over the low representation of women in the party's candidate list for the upcoming Assembly elections on April 9.
Regarding queries related to the UDF support for former CPI(M) leader G Sudhakaran, the opposition leader said that he has a lot of respect for the Marxist veteran who was a "fair minister" when he was in government.
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"He (Sudhakaran) does not lie. He was a fair minister. He distributed funds to all MLAs equally. I still respect him. He took a stand, and after that, we politically backed him," Satheesan said.
He also said that he was greatly indebted to former MLA and Congress Joseph Vazhakan, who had brought him back to the political mainstream.
"So, I am greatly indebted to him. He loved me like a brother. I am sad that even in my current position, I could not ensure a seat for him," he said.
Vazhakan had on Friday expressed his disappointment over being denied a seat at the last moment, as he had printed election posters and banners in preparation to contest in the polls.
He, however, had said that he would remain committed to the party despite the setback.
Vazhakan had said that his name had been under consideration for the Ettumannur constituency, but the Congress on Thursday decided to field DCC president Nattakom Suresh from the seat.
Satheesan, while speaking to reporters, also said that there was nothing wrong with posters being put up in the name of any Congress leader.
"We have no problems with that as the team Congress is united. The CM candidate has already been decided. It's CPI(M) narrative that there are problems in the Congress, there are no issues in the party," he said in response to reporters' queries about posters of K C Venugopal being put up in many places of the state.
