Congress leader, Ghulam Nabi Azad has reiterated the demand for restoration of the statehood of the territory before assembly elections, in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir. Ghulam Nabi Azad addressing a public rally in Ramban, Jammu, said the people of Kashmir are suffering as there is no alternative to the democratic government, Kashmir Media Service reported. “The bureaucracy is no substitute for the popular government. We cannot hold them responsible for their failure to mitigate the sufferings of the public. They are not meant to visit far-off places and listen to the public as they are constitutionally assigned the job of working in offices,” he added. Ghulam Nabi Azad claimed the authorities are not treating everyone equally and are taking “anti-people” steps like evicting people from lands that have been in their possession for decades. Raising the demand for the early restoration of statehood followed by assembly elections, the Congress leader said the people of the territory need a democratic government and not the Indian rule, which is going on after the fall of the previous government in 2018.