Jammu: Congress leader Vikar Rasool Wani on Sunday claimed that the BJP-led Centre is neither serious about holding Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir nor restoring its statehood.
The J&K Pradesh Congress Committee president also sought support from the people for the ‘Bharat Jodo Padyatra’ launched by party leader Rahul Gandhi to defeat “politics of hate and division” in the country.
“The Centre is not serious about fulfilling the commitment of early restoration of statehood and holding assembly elections (in Jammu and Kashmir), and only hoodwinking people by issuing vague statements from time to time for the last three and half years,” Wani said, addressing a workers’ convention in Samba district.
He said the vague statements by some central ministers from time to time about restoration of statehood and assembly elections do not inspire confidence and trust among people as the promises were never fulfilled by the BJP government.
The Congress leader questioned the BJP, saying the people want to know the benefits of the abrogation of special status guaranteed to them under Article 370 of the Constitution.
“People had not voted for the BJP to divide and downgrade our historical state into Union Territory and snatch our rights over lands and jobs guaranteed to people by the last Dogra ruler through state-subject laws.
“BJP only betrayed and be-fooled people… the situation is worse today than earlier, as Kashmiri Pandits, migrant labourers and other minorities are becoming targets of selective killings under the BJP regime,” he said.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had on Saturday hinted at the possibility of the Centre considering restoring state status to Jammu and Kashmir.
She dropped the hint while talking about the distribution of funds to the states by the Centre as per the recommendations of the 14th Finance Commission.
Wani alleged that the BJP only knows how to divide people in the name of religion and caste for vote bank politics and damage the secular fabric of the nation.
“This is the reason Rahul Gandhi is leading a ‘Bharat Jodo padyatra’ from Kanyakumari to Kashmir to defeat politics of hate and division in the country,” he said, urging people to join the Congress in large numbers when he reaches J&K.
All India joint secretary and co-in-charge J&K affairs Manoj Yadav, in his address, attacked the Narendra Modi-led government for its alleged failure to control unprecedented price rise and unemployment, improving the condition of farmers and addressing security concerns of women.
“Whenever elections are round the corner in any state, BJP adopts a divisive agenda of vote-bank politics, which is very dangerous for the nation,” he said.
J&K PCC working president and former minister Raman Bhalla also slammed the BJP for “destroying” Jammu and kashmir and “crushing” the rights of people.
“Statehood and democracy is our right but BJP is delaying restoration of statehood and early elections since it is ruling J&K by proxy. It has carried out distorted delimitation to achieve its political motives through backdoors,” he said, asserting that BJP will not succeed in its designs to come to power by such tactics.
He said his party will fight against the “wrong policies” of the BJP tooth and nail and stand for the rights of each and every section of the society.
