"China is the biggest threat to India and we should be very careful about that country. India's leadership should not ignore China from the security point of view," Abdullah, who is also leader of the National Conference (NC), said at an interactive session here last evening. China's "threat" is also evident from its claim over Arunachal Pradesh, he said and expressed concern over the recent incidents in Tibet. When China annexed Tibet, the then Government headed by Jawaharlal Nehru, had "maintained silence" over the issue, and as a result of which Tibet, "a buffer zone, was forcibly occupied by China", he claimed during the session organised by the J&K Forum for Peace and Reconciliation on the theme Various Concern of J&K State in the Emerging Scenario in South Asia. He also criticised China's policies which strike down India's proposal to allow tourists and pilgrims to visit Mansarovar/Kailash. Commenting on SAARC, Abdullah said India can play a major role in strengthening the organisation on the lines of European Union, which would help in boosting the economy of the south Asian region.
On Pakistan, the former chief minister said terror camps are reportedly intact in the Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) and asked the new government in that country to review its policy towards Kashmir. "Don't live in euphoria. Militants camps are still intact in PoK," he cautioned Pakistan and appealed the Centre to expedite the dialogue for an amicable settlement of the Kashmir issue. Stating that his party would accept any solution better than the autonomy proposal for Kashmir, Abdullah said the solution should, however, give separate autonomous status to Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh regions so that bitterness among the people is reduced.
On women empowerment, Abdullah alleged that successive Union governments have not "seriously taken up" the issue of 33 per cent reservation of women in Parliament. He stressed on the need for a political consensus to give due representation to women in the House. Alleging that "men do not want to bring women at par", the former CM said members of Parliament "were probably not allowing passage of women reservation Bill because they (men) feel that if women are provided this reservation, they stand to loose chances of becoming members in the Lok Sabha".
The NC patron said if his party is voted to power, he would not only give 33 per cent, but 50 per cent reservation to womenfolk in panchayats. Further, he called for stern action against corrupt bureaucrats and politicians and said the state was not achieving development targets because of "corruptions prevalent" among bureaucracy and lower echelons of the government in connivance with public representatives right from the panchayat level.
