KARGIL : National Conference leader and chairman of Kargil unit of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council Feroz Ahmad Khan on Thursday denied any threat to his chair following the withdrawal of support by BJP councillors, saying he has the backing of the required number of members.
His remarks came after the BJP withdrew its support to the National Conference in the LAHDC, Kargil, on Wednesday and recommended dissolution of the council.
“It was a surprising development as the democratically elected LAHDC-Kargil was running smoothly with developmental activities in the district witnessing a massive jump. May be the BJP’s Ladakh unit was not happy with it,” Khan told .
Khan also lashed out at the BJP’s Ladakh unit and termed as “totally misleading and false” its allegations that the council had a lackadaisical approach and there was lack of transparency in utilization of funds for public welfare.
However, Khan, who is also the chief executive councillor, praised the Narendra Modi-led central government and Lt Governor R K Mathur-led administration for ensuring “free flow of funds” for development of the border district.
He said there was no alliance between NC and the BJP in the LAHDC-Kargil.
“We (NC) had an alliance with PDP whose two members later joined BJP. The BJP members continued their support to the chair and there was officially no coalition between NC and BJP on record,” he said.
The council has 30 members.
Among the 26 elected members of the LAHDC-Kargil, 10 are from the National Conference, eight from the Congress, three from the BJP and five (independents).
The Ladakh administration nominates four members to the 30-member council.
The 2018 elections to the Council had produced a hung verdict.
After the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the NC and the Congress fell out. The NC then entered into a coalition with two PDP councillors and four independents to continue in power. A few months later, both PDP councillors joined the BJP.
“To seek a floor test, signatures of 10 members are required under the rules. They (BJP) are short of the required number. In case, a floor test was required, I am confident that we will prove our majority. As of now, we have support of 16 members (two-third majority),” Khan said.
Khan also denied allegations of pursuing vendetta politics and said “every council member is witness that we did not discriminate with anyone or any area.”
