Srinagar, Sep 09 (KNO): National Conference (NC) leaders on Wednesday apologised for party chief spokesperson Tanvir Sadiq’s controversial remarks on poverty in Kashmir during the time of party founder Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, saying the statement was unintentional and should not be dragged further.
Baramulla MLA Javid Hassan Baigh, as reported by the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO), said Sadiq was attempting to present historical facts about Jammu and Kashmir’s political situation, but acknowledged that the choice of words could have been avoided.
“Tanvir Sadiq is very mature, but sometimes the tongue slips. We are sorry and apologise unconditionally if anybody is hurt. There was no intention to hurt anybody,” Baigh said.
“He wanted to present the historical facts of Jammu and Kashmir’s political situation, which is evident, but maybe the way was not okay. It should have been avoided. After all, he is human, and it was totally unintentional,” he added.
NC MLA Salman Sagar also expressed regret over the remarks and appealed against prolonging the controversy. “If anybody is hurt by our chief spokesperson’s unintentional statement, we are sorry. This should not be dragged further,” he said.
Sagar said elected representatives derive their authority from the people and should not allow ego to come in the way of acknowledging mistakes.
“It is ultimately the people who are powerful and by whom we are here. There should be no ego. If such things happen which are hurtful, we should apologise, and we are sorry,” the MLA said.
The controversy followed remarks by Tanvir Sadiq on Tuesday, in which he referred to the severe poverty in Kashmir during Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah’s time and said that an entire village would sometimes share a single pair of trousers—(KNO)