Dear Editor,
The meaning of the phrase Tom, Dick and Harry remained Greek to me till the 2014 elections to the Jammu and Kashmir State Assembly were over because the quality, qualifications and capability of newly elected BJP MLAs was more than an answer I was longing for since long. The shrewd persons linked with varied professions, groups, activists of some momentary movements, owners of big houses, rice shellers, brick kilns, shopping complexes and those very near to the party organisation were the luckiest who could manipulate the mandates for themselves by lock, stock and barrel by pushing the most deserving, capable, honest, dedicated and educated aspirants to the wall.
Leaving a few educated and capable MLAs the rest are devoid of wisdom, vision and art of eloquence with the result they have to cut a sorry figure in the House whenever any Bill is sent to them for opinion or discussion in the House. Disappointed over the poor performance of the honorable MLAs in the House, the central BJP leadership couldn’t help suggesting for arranging a tuition in English for the honorable novice MLAs of State Assembly.
Before elections our leaders unanimously resolved and promised for the overall and multipronged development of the Jammu region but the reality is somewhat different on ground because some of them or not even in speaking terms with each other. They have divided the constituencies in the water tight compartments where no minister or an MLA can dare to enter in others constituencies. The whole BJP is behaving like a divided house where many novice MLAs are at daggers drawn with each other. The BJP MLAs, instead of working together in team spirit, rely upon the favours of their counterpart PDP MLAs for their personal benefit. They speak in tune with the PDP MLAs even if the subject matter goes against the interest of Jammu and Leh regions. It is necessary to mention here that, senior leaders of BJP, in order to show their loyality towards PDP counterparts forget the occasion as to what to say, when to say and where to say and have to eat a humble pie afterwards. The statement of PDP supremo Mehbooba Mufti regarding the vacuum of leadership in Jammu in the presence of senior most BJP leader, controversial statements of the same leader on the encounter of Burhan Wani , calling the terrorist attacks on NIT, inmates of EDI building, Uri and Nagrota as minor brought the vision, wisdom and capability of the top brass of the State BJP under scanner which brought nothing but disappointment for the party men.
After becoming legislators many of them boycotted their relations with masses and the ground level workers of the party but for whose hard work they would have never reached the parlor of power. Where the doors of their official and the personal residence were closed and declared out of bound for the common man the same were thrown open for the blue eyed bureaucrats, touts, contractors and the power brokers for favour of transfer of choice, table of choice, contract of choice without tendering. The better halves of some legislatures have become mobile power hubs, transfer and promotion machines because it is believed that the whole power of the State rests with them. Some of the Cabinet Ministers are running their own industries and are using their products in the governmental projects brazenly. Due to the chaos, indiscipline, lack of team spirit and ego among the party MLAS the whole developmental work of the State is in limbo.
Shiv Kumar Padha
Basohli
