Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister
Omar Abdullah on Thursday called on the Governor N N Vohra here and
briefed him about the measures being taken to restore normalcy
in the Valley.
The meeting between the two at Raj Bhavan lasted an hour
and issues relating to conduct of elections to panchayats and
urban local bodies were also discussed, an official spokesman
said.
The state government is planning to hold panchayat polls
in the month of December with mainstream political parties
activating their cadres and hardline Hurriyat Conference led
by Syed Ali Shah Geelani urging the people to boycott the
elections.
The spokesman said Omar briefed the Governor about the
situation in the state and the measures being taken to restore
normalcy in the Valley.
Various other issues pertaining to governance,
particularly the implementation of the related state laws for
establishing full fledged functioning of statutory bodies
responsible for enhancing accountability, promoting efficiency
and curbing corruption in the administrative system were also
discussed, the spokesman said.
He said the governor reiterated his concern about the
prevailing situation affecting educational institutions and
called for measures on an urgent basis to restore full
functioning of the schools, colleges and universities in the
Valley.
Asking people to boycott the panchayat elections, Geelani
in a statement here said, "Though elections won't hamper our
ongoing movement, it creates doubts about our cause at the
diplomatic level. It has been the Hurriyat's standing policy
to boycott the elections and we hope the people will respect
the sacrifices and stay away from the process."
PTI
First Published: Thursday, October 14, 2010, 19:16