Srinagar, July 26: Apni Party (AP) president Syed Muhammad Altaf Bukhari on Tuesday said that no human society could grow and develop as a civilized society unless it would give its women their due share in the “process of policy, planning, and development.”
He was addressing the party’s first-ever district level women convention at SKICC here.
Bukhari said, “Apni party believes that the women, who constitute nearly half of the overall population, should be socially, economically, educationally, and politically empowered in order to develop a civilized society.”
The convention was attended by women from different walks of society, party leaders and workers from Srinagar.
Bukhari said, “With the experience of history, the world has a consensus that no society can grow and progress until it gives equal rights to women in terms of their participation in the planning, policy, and development. Therefore, we ought to give the due status and rights to the women in Kashmir, where they have been the worst victim of the unrest over the period of more than three decades.”
He added, “Kashmir’s women have suffered as mothers, sisters, daughters, or the spouses of the victims who fall prey to the enduring conflict situation here. Now, we must wipe every tear from the eyes of our mothers and sisters. We must give them strength and lay an easy-going path leading to a better future.”
“We have to ensure their social, educational, economic, and political empowerment to make a prosperous society in Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.
Bukhari further said, “Since Apni Party has an agenda to ensure sustained peace, prosperity, and development in Jammu and Kashmir; the women have a vital role to ensure the implementation of this agenda.”
Reiterating his party’s position, the AP president said, “I have already said it time and again that when AP gets the people’s mandate, we will take several initiatives to ensure the economic and social empowerment of women. We will give 33 percent from the reserved quota of the government services to the women in J&K.”
He further said, “We will enhance marriage assistance to the girls up to Rs 1 lakh, and the monthly widow pension up to Rs 5000 from the existing Rs 1000. Also, we will give 4 free gas cylinders (refills) to every household annually,”
The convention was organized by the provincial president of the party’s women wing Dilshad Shaheen.
“Bukhari congratulated her and other party functionaries for organizing such a grand women convention —a historic event as such a grand convention with massive participation of the women has been organized for the first time since 1975,” the party maintained in its official statement.
On this occasion, Dilshad Shaheen said, “Apni Party has a clear vision and agenda for women empowerment in J&K. We will change the existing scenario for good.”
She appealed to the women to join the Apni Party so that the movement for women empowerment in J&K could be strengthened further. “Unlike in the past, we have an upright female literacy rate here, which is an indication that our sisters and daughter are awake and ready to play their role in the prosperity and development of J&K. The Apni Party is a perfect platform to work for the peace and prosperity of our land and the economic and political empowerment of women. We welcome the women from any part of the J&K into the fold of the party’s women wing,” she said,
Prominent party leaders and the senior political workers who were present on this occasion included senior vice-president Ghulam Hassan Mir, general secretary Rafi Ahmad Mir, provincial president Kashmir Mohammad Ashraf Mir, party’s youth wing president and Mayor Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) Junaid Azim Mattu, J&K secretary Muntazir Mohi-ud-Din, DDC member Karnah advocate Najma Hamid, DDC member Shaista Aslam, DDC chairman Srinagar Aftab Malik, district president Srinagar Noor Mohammad Sheikh, district president Kupwara Raja Manzoor, district president Srinagar Iram, district president Budgam Shakeela Banoo.