Cong gave Food Security Act, MGNREGA, 2 CUs in J&K
*Restoring Statehood priority of Cong: Rahul
Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Aug 22: Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi today said that restoring Statehood to Jammu and Kashmir is the priority of Congress and the INDIA bloc.
Gandhi said his party’s aim is that the people of J&K and Ladakh get their democratic rights back. “It is our priority, and also of the INDIA bloc, to get Statehood restored to J&K as soon as possible. We had expected this could be done prior to elections, but it is okay, elections have been declared,” he said.
Click here to watch video
Gandhi said at a press conference after an interaction with party workers here that holding of elections in J&K is a step forward.
“It is a step forward and we are hoping that Statehood will be restored as soon as possible and the democratic rights of the people of J&K will be restored,” he added.
He assured people of J&K that the Congress is always there to help them in whatever way it can.
Follow The Daily Excelsior Channel On WhatsApp
“My message to the people of J&K is that whatever way we can help you, the Congress party is always there. We understand that you are going through a very difficult period, a tough period. We want to end violence.”
The Congress leader said he has a very deep relationship with the people of J&K and it is always a pleasure for him to visit the place.
Gandhi said it is the first time since Independence that a state has been downgraded to a Union Territory (UT).
“This has never happened before. UTs have become states, but it is the first time that a state has become a UT. We are very clear in our national manifesto as well that it is a priority for us that the people of J&K and Ladakh get their democratic rights back,” he added.
“We want to open “Mohabbat ki dukan nafrat ke bazar mein” (shop of love in the market of hate) with respect and brotherhood.”
Earlier, addressing his party leaders and workers, Gandhi said he shares an old bond and a blood relation with Kashmir.
Referring to his late night visit to have a dinner and relish ice-cream here, he said he felt irritated when someone asked him whether he liked the people of J&K.
“We went to the restaurant to have a dinner. They brought Wazwan. Kharge has been advised by his doctors not to eat non-vegetarian food, so he could not relish Wazwan. Then I went out to have some ice-cream. I met some people there who asked me whether I like the people of J&K. This irritated me and I told them that no I do not like the people of J&K, I love them,” he said.
Gandhi said his mission is to erase the pain and fear in the hearts of the people of J&K.
“I, Kharge and the Congress party want to end the pain that you are going through,” he added.
Gandhi said his party and the opposition’s INDIA Bloc crushed the self-confidence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha polls.
“The ideology of the Congress party and the INDIA Bloc defeated him. We did not resort to violence or abusive language, but succeeded in conveying a message to PM Modi that he is not what he thinks he is. We have crushed his self-confidence and psychology,” he said.
“PM Modi does not thump his chest anymore, he added.
Meanwhile, Kharge termed the ruling BJP’s promises to the people of the Union Territory as “jumla”.
Kharge said not a single promise made by the BJP to the people of the region before elections has been fulfilled. “Not a single promise made to the people of Jammu and Kashmir before the polls has been kept. They are all jumla,” Kharge said.
“This was the first meeting after the polls were announced…. We are here to seek the views of local leaders and workers for the polls and alliances. Under Rahul Gandhi’s leadership, we have taken the initiative to restore statehood for Jammu and Kashmir. We promise to work towards that,” Kharge said.
He said Gandhi is interested in forging a pre-poll alliance in the Union Territory.
“Rahul Gandhi is interested in contesting the polls unitedly with other parties in Jammu and Kashmir. We have had success as well. We have seen the results in the Lok Sabha polls. The INDIA bloc stopped a dictator from coming to power (at the Centre) with an absolute majority. This is the biggest success of the INDIA bloc,” Kharge said.
The Congress president said the BJP is worried after the Lok Sabha polls as some of the legislations it was keen on passing in Parliament have either been withdrawn or sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee.
He accused the BJP of taking advantage of its brute majority in Parliament to pass anti-people laws like those on the farming sector.
“They downgraded the erstwhile state into a Union Territory and the people here were not given any rights, he said, adding that there is no Legislative Council, no Panchayat or Municipality. The people have been kept away from democracy,” Kharge said.
He said the Assembly polls have been announced in Jammu and Kashmir only because of the Supreme Court’s direction that the election be held by September 30.
“I want to tell the BJP and Narendra Modi that you try as you might, you will not be successful in suppressing the voice of people. You cannot suppress their aspirations. In a democracy, the voice that matters is the voice of people, and we will continue to support the voice of people”.
“We will be with the people. We will fight shoulder to shoulder with them for their wishes and aspirations. This is our promise,” he said.
The Congress chief said if elected to power, the Congress will work on job creation, bringing investments and giving a boost to horticulture and tourism as well as small-scale industries.
Kharge also said all secular forces will work together towards the restoration of peace in Jammu and Kashmir.
“We want peace and prosperity to be restored in Jammu and Kashmir. There is violence on the border, infiltration and terror. They (BJP) used to say that when Article 370 goes, it will stop terror and bring prosperity. Where is the prosperity? Unemployment is increasing, there is price rise and their atrocities are also increasing across the country,” he asked.
Gandhi, along with party president Mallikarjun Kharge also Thursday spoke with Congress leaders and workers here to get a feedback about the grassroots-level preparations for the assembly polls.
Asserting that the Congress and its workers have shaken Prime Minister Modi’s confidence, LoP Rahul remarked he (Modi) has lost the self-assured body language he displayed before the elections.
“Congress workers have given him so much psychological tension that his confidence has been badly hit. Congress workers have forced him to bow before the Constitution. He is not the same PM he was before the elections,” Rahul Gandhi said in Jammu during workers meeting.
Taking a dig at the Prime Minister, Rahul said Modi’s body language and confidence have drastically changed after the Parliamentary election results.
“You know my relationship with you. It is not a political connection. It is a relationship of love and that of my family’s background. My family comes from your state,” the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha told Congress workers here.
He was addressing them on the second and concluding day of his visit to poll-bound Jammu and Kashmir.
While playing an emotional chord with the people here, Rahul Gandhi said he considers himself their soldier in New Delhi, and added his doors are always open for party workers.
“So, you should always feel that you have a Sepoy in Delhi. I am your Sepoy. Whatever you need, my doors are always open for you,” he added.
“You only have to give me an order, and I will be present before you,” Gandhi said amid applause.
Flanked by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and others, Gandhi referred to party leaders as his ‘Generals’ and the workers as ‘Sepoys’. He emphasised that both must be respected in all situations, including during alliances with other parties.
In an apparent dig at former Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, without naming him, Gandhi said, “When there was a difficult time, and you and your ideology were under attack, you still fought on the ground, keeping the flag flying high. Several people threw down the flag and ran away. You did not run away. You faced bullets, sticks, and abuses, and grabbed your ground firmly. I call you the lions of the Congress.”
He affirmed that the Congress will continue to challenge the BJP across the country. “Whenever they try to do any mischief, they will find the Congress challenging them. The Congress and its workers have saved the Constitution and democracy in the country. We will thwart their design. They will not be allowed to pass their bills,” he said.
Rahul said the Congress is engaged in a battle of ideologies with the BJP. “It is a fight between the ideologies of Congress and the RSS.”
On the issue of ticket distribution by the Congress in Jammu and Kashmir, Gandhi expressed his desire to see tickets being given to grassroots workers and the young people. “They should have the opportunity to become MLAs. I want to see them in Assembly.”
He also called for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood at the earliest. He said the people of J&K have gained nothing under the current regime, which has handed over all the region’s resources to ‘outsiders’.
Earlier, both Rahul Gandhi and Kharge were honoured with Dogri turban and picture of Mata Vaishnodevi ji during the workers’ meeting, .
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said PM Modi tries to claim massive development by his Government in Jammu and Kashmnir and the entire country but fact is that Food Security Act, MGNREGA and free Education is the contribution of Congress Party. Under Food Security Act, the poor people in the country are getting free ration. Congress gave two Universities (CUs) in Kashmir and Jammu and perhaps Modi will not be knowing about them.
“I still remember, with the UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and PM Dr Manmohan Singh he had gone for the commissioning of Tunnel at Banihal. We could not run the train due to Code of Conduct and the elections. But Modi claims that he brought train to Kashmir and ensured all the development here. The people know about the real facts,” Kharge added.
Terming PM Modi as full of proud, Congress president said destiny of a person keeps on changing but the mirror remains the same. One should try to change the ‘picture’ and work for the public in real sense.
Launching scathing attack on Modi Government, Kharge said BJP has brought ‘devastation’ in the Jammu and Kashmir after Aug 5, 2019. There is no Legislative Assembly, Council, Panchayats Urban Local Bodies. The people of this part of the country have been left to face lot of miseries.
He said Rahul Gandhi launched Bharat Jodo Yatra from Kanyakumari to Kashmir and Manipur to Mumbai, during which he received massive public support. It was the outcome of this Yatra that the air balloon of the Modi and other BJP leaders was deflated in 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Kharge asserted.
JKPCC president, Tariq Hameed Karra and working presidents, Raman Bhalla and Tara Chand also spoke on the occasion.
After, workers’ meeting, Kharge and Gandhi left for New Delhi in the evening.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
