Will go on hunger strike if J-K's electoral demography is changed: Lone

Sajad Lone, President of Peoples Conference (PC) said on Monday that he will sit on hunger strike before Parliament if electoral demography of Jammu and Kashmir is changed.

Speaking to the media here, Lone said that the Peoples Representation Act (1950 and 1951) is not against us, but the intention of the government is.

He said he will neither accept the explanation given on voting rights to non-locals by the government nor reject it.

"We will wait and watch the situation," he said.

In another development, Sajad Lone said that he will not attend Monday's all-party meeting called by former Chief Minister and National Conference Chief Dr. Farooq Abdullah to discuss the issue of voting rights to non-locals despite an invite.

"I have a lot of respect for Dr. Farooq Abdullah personally, but I will not attend the meeting because if we have to take any concrete steps to fight the inclusion of non-locals as voters then the meeting would not have been called in the media gaze", he said.

He accused PDP president, Mehbooba Mufti of trying to regain her lost ground by these desperate steps.

It must be recalled that Mufti had requested Dr. Abdullah to call an all-party meeting to discuss the issue.

Sajad said despite claims of unity, local politicians have been speaking against each other thereby conveying an impression that they are not serious on forging unity among local political parties

--IANS

sq/dpb