Sajad Lone slams NC over Waqf Bill row, calls Farooq Abdullah’s support for speaker a “Mockery”
Srinagar, April 14: Peoples Conference President and MLA Handwara, Sajad Lone, on Sunday said he was not surprised by Dr. Farooq Abdullah’s recent endorsement of the Assembly Speaker’s decision to block a discussion on the Waqf Amendment Bill, calling it a “tremendous mockery.”
Speaking to the media, Lone criticized the National Conference (NC) for what he described as a contradictory stance on the controversial legislation.
“They have 50 MLAs, the Speaker is from their party—so who exactly were they protesting against? And now Farooq Abdullah is supporting the Speaker’s decision. It’s a farce,” Lone said.
He lamented that a critical opportunity was lost to either pass a resolution or at least hold a meaningful debate on the Waqf Bill. “This could have sent a strong message from the country’s only Muslim-majority province. Instead, NC eemed to be at war with itself just to derail the discussion and appease New Delhi,” he added.
Commenting on NC’s intentions to challenge the Bill in the Supreme Court, Lone noted that while the judiciary will decide the case on legal merits, the emotional and political weight that could have been projected through the Assembly was lost.
“Our collective voice as a Muslim-majority region would have resonated. Now, even if thousands file petitions, the court will only look at legalities. This situation has emerged because NC chose to satisfy BJP MLAs rather than stand with the people,” Lone said.(KINS)
