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Enough is enough with Vajpayee, says Omar Abdullah

Omar Abdullah, son of Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah, has said the National Conference will reconsider its support to the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government if the state's genuine demands were not met by the Centre immediately.

In an interview, the NC Lok Sabha member from Srinagar said the constituent parties of the Vajpayee government and those supporting it from outside had been able to secure a lot of benefits for their states, but not the NC.

He said the main demands of Jammu and Kashmir were liberal financial help for rebuilding its damaged infrastructure, full reimbursement of security-related expenditure and counter-guarantee for new power projects.

But, Abdullah said, the Centre continued to ignore these demands. The state had a vast potential for building hydel power projects and attract foreign investments for this purpose.

However, the Centre was not ready to provide such counter-guarantees.

He said, ''We have pleaded our case before the Centre time and again but to no avail.''

''Enough is enough. We have now decided to reconsider our support to the BJP-led coalition government,'' he said.

Abdullah said his party, which has three members in the Lok Sabha, had extended support to the Vajpayee government despite protests from different quarters in the state.

This was done because a poor state like Jammu and Kashmir could not afford confrontation with the Centre and moreover, it was hoped that the coalition government would help the state rebuild its infrastructure damaged during eight years of militancy.

The threat of withdrawal of support by the National Conference soon after the Indian National Lok Dal's withdrawal of support and internal squabbling within the BJP might add to the problems of the Vajpayee government.

He said when the NC decided to support the Vajpayee government, it was given an assurance that the Centre would liberally provide funds to the state to bring its devastated economy back on the tracks, but this promise was not kept.

''You will find a very different NC in Parliament during the Budget session, beginning on February 22,'' Abdullah said.

UNI

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