India News

Chidambaram slams Centre’s offer of elections first, statehood later in Jammu and Kashmir

Congress and other J&K parties want statehood first and elections afterwards, but the Centre’s response is elections first and statehood later, said senior Congress leader and former Home Minister P Chidambaram in a tweet on Friday.

Published

5 years ago

June 25, 2021

A day after the Prime Minister’s all-party meeting with 14 political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir, former Home Minister P. Chidambaram has slammed the Narendra Modi government for insisting on elections in the Union Territory before restoring statehood.

Chidambaram said the Congress and J&K parties and leaders want statehood restored first and elections afterwards, but the Centre’s response is elections first and statehood later.

He said this was like putting the cart before the horse, when it should in fact pull the cart. The Congress leader said statehood can ensure smoother conduct of elections. Only elections under a State Election Commission will be free and fair and called the government’s insistence on holding elections first bizarre.

Congress and other J&K parties and leaders want Statehood first and Elections afterward.

Government’s response is Elections first and Statehood later.
— P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) June 25, 2021

The horse pulls the cart. A state must conduct elections. Only such elections will be free and fair.

Why does the government want the cart in front and the horse behind? It is bizarre.
— P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) June 25, 2021

On Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir of restoring statehood after the assembly elections which would be held once the delimitation exercise, the immediate reason to hold the meeting, is over. He said he was glad about their commitment to the Constitution and democracy and said he wants to remove ‘Dilli ki Duri as well as Dil Ki Duri’.

This was the first official interaction of the Union government with political leaders from Jammu and Kashmir since August 5, 2019, after the abrogation of Article 370 and bifurcation of the border state into two union territories.

Among the leaders who attended the meeting were National Conference’s Dr Farooq Abdullah and Omar Abdullah, Congress’ Ghulam Nabi Azad, Tara Chand and GA Mir, PDP’s Mehbooba Mufti, J-K Apni Party’s Altaf Bukhari, BJP’s Ravinder Raina, Nirmal Singh, and Kavinder Gupta, Peoples Conference’s Sajad Gani Lone and CPI(M)’s MY Tarigami; National Panthers Party’s Prof Bheem Singh.

Restoring statehood as promised in Parliament, the delimitation exercise and holding of peaceful elections in the Union Territory are important milestones, said Home Minister Amit Shah, who was present in the meeting, along with National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and the Home Secretary.

Omar Abdullah on meeting

Addressing the media after the meeting, NC leader Omar Abdullah said it was the duty of the Centre to restore the broken trust of the people and take all measures required to restore statehood.

The former Chief Minister also said that they are going to use the constitutional right to challenge the decision of scrapping special status in the Supreme Court.

“It is unfortunate that the Supreme Court has not found the time to start hearings in these matters, but we are not going to stop. If we have to start a campaign, however long it is, we will do it peacefully, legally and constitutionally. We won’t put the people in harm’s way,” Abdullah said.

The National Conference leader and a former Chief Minister said decisions that weren’t in the interest of Kashmir should be taken back. It was given the status of a Union Territory, people don’t like it. They want full statehood for J&K and the J&K cadre restored, he said.

He said the delegation told the Prime Minister that they don’t stand with what was done on August 5, 2019. Though we don’t accept it, we are not going to take the law into our hands. We’ll fight this in court, Abdullah added.

Further, Abdullah said all leaders who participated in the meeting demanded full statehood for Jammu and Kashmir. Both Prime Minister and Home Minister said the work for elections and restoring statehood should start soon. However, Azad said that statehood should be restored first and only then should elections be held. On this Prime Minister didn’t say anything, he said.

The question over the PM’s talks with Pakistan was also discussed at the meeting. On this, Abdullah said it appears there are backchannel talks at some level if one goes by media reports. It is not the Government of India’s sole responsibility to create an atmosphere for talks, even Pakistan should ensure that it stops support to terrorism since talks cannot continue because of it.

But we cannot also forget what someone like (former Prime Minister) Atal Bihari Vajpayee had said — that we can change our friends but not our neighbours. Pakistan will remain our neighbour and somehow, by using back channels, we need to dissipate this atmosphere of tension,” he added.

What did Mehbooba Mufti say

PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti said her party will relentlessly pursue the demand for the restoration of Article 370 and other special provisions enjoyed by the erstwhile state. She told the PM that the people of J&K do not accept how Article 370 was abrogated unconstitutionally, illegally and immorally.

The former Chief Minister said the people of Jammu and Kashmir are in a lot of difficulties after August 5, 2019. “They are angry, upset and emotionally shattered. They feel humiliated. I told the Prime Minister that people of Jammu and Kashmir do not accept the manner in which Article 370 was abrogated unconstitutionally, illegally and immorally,” she told reporters.

She said that the people of Jammu and Kashmir will struggle constitutionally, democratically, and peacefully. Be it months or years, they will continue to agitate till Article 370 is restored in Jammu and Kashmir since it is a matter of the people’s identity. She said that identity was not given by Pakistan but it was conferred upon the people of Kashmir by their country, by Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel.

On the talks with Pakistan, the PDP president said that she congratulated PM Modi for the resumption of talks that has now led to a ceasefire and, as a result, the levels of infiltration have come down. They should continue talks with Pakistan if that will guarantee peace in Jammu and Kashmir. Mufti said they should also talk to Pakistan about trade with Pakistan-occupied Kashmir which has been halted as it is a source of employment for many in Jammu and Kashmir, she added.

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Delhi-NCR sees second spell of rain and thunderstorms in four days

Delhi-NCR experienced another spell of rain and thunderstorms on March 18, with IMD forecasting more showers over the next few days.

Published

4 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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Delhi and parts of the National Capital Region witnessed another spell of rain, thunderstorms, and strong winds on Wednesday evening, marking the second such weather event in the past four days.

The sudden change brought relief from unusually high temperatures recorded earlier this month. According to officials, the temperature at Safdarjung — the city’s base weather station — was recorded at 24 degrees Celsius at 7 pm.

The India Meteorological Department had earlier issued an alert predicting light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning on March 18. Several areas across the capital experienced gusty winds along with brief but intense showers.

More rain likely over next two days

The weather department has forecast partly cloudy skies for March 19 and 20, with chances of light rain or thundershowers occurring once or twice during the day. On March 21, skies are expected to remain cloudy with the possibility of light showers continuing.

Conditions are likely to stabilise from March 23 onwards, with forecasts indicating a return to partly cloudy to clear skies across the region.

Weather activity across India to intensify

The IMD has also indicated widespread weather activity across multiple regions of the country in the coming days. Rainfall is expected to intensify in several states, accompanied by thunderstorms, lightning, and gusty winds.

In the northeastern region, heavy rainfall is likely over Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, and Meghalaya during the early part of the week.

Meanwhile, the western Himalayan region is also set to witness a shift in weather patterns. Himachal Pradesh is likely to receive heavy rainfall on March 19 and 20, while Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir may experience heavy showers around March 20.

India News

Centre pushes states to cut levies to boost PNG adoption

The Centre has asked states to reduce local levies and streamline approvals to accelerate PNG adoption and city gas infrastructure growth.

Published

6 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has urged states and Union Territories to ease local levies and procedural barriers affecting City Gas Distribution (CGD) projects, in a bid to accelerate the adoption of piped natural gas (PNG) as a cleaner fuel alternative.

In a communication sent to Chief Secretaries, Petroleum and Natural Gas Secretary Neeraj Mittal highlighted that high right-of-way charges, road cutting fees, lease rentals and other local levies imposed by urban bodies are discouraging investments in CGD infrastructure.

High costs slowing expansion

The ministry pointed out that the CGD sector, particularly PNG supply to households and commercial establishments, does not receive direct subsidies. As a result, it depends heavily on viable returns, which are being impacted by excessive and inconsistent local charges across states.

It noted that these financial and procedural hurdles are slowing down infrastructure expansion and affecting the broader adoption of natural gas.

Gap between connections and usage

According to the government, while around 12.63 crore PNG connections have been recorded, only about 1.6 crore are currently active. The ministry stressed that improving ease of doing business at state and local levels could help bridge this gap and expand the consumer base.

Officials believe that rationalising levies may initially reduce local revenues but could lead to higher long-term gains through increased gas consumption and economic activity.

LPG shortage adds urgency

The push for PNG adoption comes amid supply constraints in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), linked to ongoing tensions in the Middle East. Oil marketing companies are currently supplying only 20 per cent of normal commercial LPG demand to states.

To address this, the ministry has proposed increasing LPG allocation to 30 per cent for states that implement reforms supporting PNG and CGD expansion.

Reform-linked incentives for states

The Centre has suggested a set of measures that states can adopt to qualify for higher LPG allocations. These include:

Setting up empowered state and district-level committees for faster approvals
Introducing single-window clearance with deemed approvals within 24 hours
Implementing a dig-and-restore model using bank guarantees instead of restoration charges
Eliminating annual rental or lease charges for CGD infrastructure

The ministry said compliance with these reforms would be verified before granting additional LPG allocations.

Industry support measures

The communication also noted that GAIL and its subsidiaries have already allocated full gas supply to the commercial PNG segment to support businesses affected by reduced LPG availability.

The government reiterated that expanding natural gas usage aligns with its broader push for cleaner and domestically sourced energy.

India News

BJP seals Assam seat-sharing pact, Modi to hold 3 rallies in April

BJP has finalised its Assam seat-sharing plan with allies and is gearing up for an intense campaign led by PM Modi and Amit Shah.

Published

6 hours ago

March 18, 2026

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The Bharatiya Janata Party has finalised its seat-sharing arrangement for the upcoming Assam Assembly elections, firming up its strategy alongside National Democratic Alliance partners as campaigning gathers pace in the state.

Under the agreement, the BJP will contest 89 seats, while its allies — Asom Gana Parishad and Bodoland People’s Front — will field candidates in 26 and 11 constituencies respectively. The distribution has been decided after internal deliberations, with the focus now shifting to candidate announcements and campaign execution.

Campaign push led by top leadership

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address three rallies in Assam during the final leg of the campaign. Tentative dates for the rallies are April 1, April 3 and April 6, with events likely to be held in key constituencies.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah is also set to spearhead an extensive campaign across the state through March, aiming to energise party workers and strengthen voter outreach.

Candidate selection underway

The party’s Central Election Committee is currently meeting to finalise candidates. Sources indicate that approvals for most constituencies are expected soon, and the BJP may release its complete list of candidates within the next two days.

Ticket distribution remains a crucial exercise, with internal discussions highlighting its potential impact on local political dynamics. Party leaders have also touched upon the proposed delimitation exercise scheduled for 2027, which is expected to have long-term implications for Assam’s electoral landscape.