KISHTWAR, Sept 16: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said there is a clear fight between the Congress-National Conference alliance and the BJP — one wanting to bring back Article 370, and the other committed to stopping it.
He said voting in favour of BJP candidate Shugan Parihar is not only for development and progress but also to pay tribute to martyrs, including her father.
“This election in Jammu and Kashmir is clearly between two forces. On one side are the National Conference (NC) and the Congress, and on the other side is the BJP. It is a contest between the BJP and the Gandhi-Abdullah families. Both have clear agendas,” Shah told a public rally here.
He said the BJP follows the ideology of Prem Nath Dogra – “One Constitution, one flag, and one Prime Minister,” affirming that Jammu and Kashmir is an inseparable part of India, and “no one can reverse that”.
Shah, who was campaigning in support of party candidates Shugan Parihar, Sunil Sharma, and Taraq Keen, said the NC and the Congress have said they will restore Article 370 if their government comes to power. “The reservations now available to hill people and Gujjars will be taken away under Article 370,” he said.
“It is a contest between those who want to bring back Article 370 and those who have made it history,” he added.
“What (Prime Minister) Modi ji did by removing Article 370 has become a page in history. There is no place left for Article 370 in the Constitution of India. In Jammu and Kashmir, there can never again be two Constitutions, two prime ministers, and two flags. The flag will always be our beloved tricolour,” he said.
Hitting out at the NC and the Congress, he said efforts are still being made, similar to those in 1990, to strengthen terrorism again. “The NC and the Congress have made some promises that if their government comes to power, they will release terrorists,” he said.
“Today, I tell you all that this is the Narendra Modi government; no one has the courage to spread terrorism on Indian soil,” he added.
He accused the NC-Congress alliance of “nurturing” terrorism. “Whenever the National Conference and the Congress formed the government in the valley, terrorism thrived,” he alleged.
“Remember the 1990s… I want to ask (former chief minister) Farooq Abdullah, who was the chief minister then after a pact with Rajiv Gandhi. Where were you when our valley was drenched in blood?” he added.
Shah said voting for Parihar and making her victorious is not just for peace, progress, and development but also to pay homage to the martyrs of this land, including her father and uncle.
Shah said that if the Congress-National Conference alliance returns to power, “there will be shootings again, stone-pelting will resume, funerals for terrorists will be held again, the Tazia procession will be banned again, cinema halls will be shut down again, there will be attacks on the Amarnath Yatra once more, and the investment coming to Jammu and Kashmir will be replaced by unemployment.”
He claimed the Congress, which once called the Abdullah family “traitors” and held them responsible for terrorism, had kept Omar Abdullah’s grandfather in jail for years. “Today, to defeat Modi ji, Rahul Gandhi and Abdullah are saying ‘ILU ILU’ to each other.”
Warning terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir, Shah said, “There is still time to turn back, otherwise the Indian Army and security forces are stationed here… you will be dealt with right here.”
He said PM Modi has “strengthened” democracy in Jammu and Kashmir. “I want to ask Farooq Abdullah – your family ruled for three generations, but did the people of Jammu and Kashmir ever receive free medical treatment worth up to Rs 5 lakh? Modi ji has provided free treatment worth up to Rs 5 lakh to everyone, from the valley to the plains.”
Recalling the party’s long battle over Kashmir, he said, “Under the leadership of Syama Prasad Mookerjee and Pandit Prem Nath Dogra, the Praja Parishad and the Bharatiya Jana Sangh fought against the idea of ‘two flags, two Constitutions, and two leaders’ in one country.”
Shah alleged the Congress government, led by the then prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, crushed the movement. “They used to say, even if stars fall from the sky, Article 370 will never be removed.”
Taking a dig at political leaders’ remarks on Article 370, Shah said, “Farooq Ji used to say that even if Modi ji becomes prime minister ten times, Article 370 cannot be removed. Mehbooba ji said that if Article 370 is removed, rivers of blood will flow. But our Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi removed Article 370 and established ‘one flag, one leader, and one Constitution’ in the country.”
He described Kishtwar as a land of martyrs. “Due to Congress’ wrong policies, the decision on Jammu and Kashmir’s future during partition was delayed due to Nehru’s Sheikh-supporting policies,” he added.
He further said that whenever there was a crisis in Jammu and Kashmir, the people of Kishtwar never hesitated to sacrifice. “During terrorism of the 1990s, every citizen here fought alongside the security forces and contributed to eradicating terrorism.” (PTI)
