‘Rahul, Omar fooling people on Statehood; only Modi will restore it’
Cong, Abdullahs, Muftis indulged in corruption; looted crores
First Assembly election under national flag, one Constitution
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Sept 7: Union Home Minister Amit Shah today declared that a decision as to who will form next Government in Jammu and Kashmir after the Assembly elections will be taken by the people of Jammu even as he asserted that if the Congress, PDP or NC come to power, terrorism would resurface in the UT. He added that it is now for the people of J&K to decide whether they want to face terrorism or embrace peace, stability and development.
Addressing a massive workers’ rally at Paloura on outskirts of the City here, Shah said the BJP candidates not only have to defeat their opponents but also ensure that they lose their security deposits.
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Union Ministers GK Reddy and Dr Jitendra Singh, Tarun Chugh, national general secretary Incharge J&K, BJP MP Jugal Kishore Sharma, Devender Singh Rana and all other candidates from Jammu and surrounding districts whose candidatures have been cleared so far by the BJP were present.
“A decision as to who will form next Government in the UT will be taken by people of the Jammu region,” Shah declared amid applause and cheers from the workers.
BJP draws its strength in the Jammu region which has 43 Assembly seats as against 47 of Kashmir division. In last Assembly polls in 2014, BJP won 25 seats out of then total of 37. PDP was the single largest party with 28 seats while NC and Congress had 15 and 12 seats respectively.
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“People of J&K need to decide whether they want to face terrorism or embrace peace, stability and development. If the NC comes to power, terrorism will return. However, under the BJP, none will be able to spread terror in the region,” the Home Minister said.
Charging three families Abdullahs, Muftis and Congress of indulging in “blatant corruption and looting crores”, he said return of these parties to power will mean restoration of old system and injustice with Jammu region. They raised the slogan of autonomy. They want to give autonomy. Over 40,000 people were killed in J&K, he added.
The corruption by these families is equal to that in the entire country, the Union Home Minister said. “Had the money taken by them been utilised for development of the region, no work would have been left incomplete in Jammu and Kashmir.”
Charging Congress leader Rahul Gandhi with trying to fool the people of Jammu and Kashmir, Shah while referring to the statement of Rahul and Omar Abdullah that they will give Statehood, asked the people who can restore Statehood to J&K.
“They (Rahul and Omar) are befooling the people. Only the Government of India and (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi can give Statehood to J&K. I have stated this in Parliament,” he added.
Taking a dig at Abdullahs, the Home Minister said the people of Kashmir braved terrorism but previous Governments turned a blind eye towards the scourge.
“When there was terrorism, they used to take coffee in coffee bar at New Delhi and when there was peace, they became the Chief Minister. Narendra Modi Government during last 10 years has brought down terrorism by 70 percent,” he said in an apparent dig at NC president Dr Farooq Abdullah.
He said the BJP will fight the elections with its might and nobody should have any doubt about its victory.
“(PM) Modi restored your honour by ending discrimination and injustice faced by you… Ensure a Government which will work for you so that you do not go to Srinagar with a begging bowl. It is possible by strengthening Modi’s hand,” Shah said.
Asking the BJP workers at the rally to “take a pledge to ensure the victory of party candidates before leaving this place”, Shah said this Assembly election is the first under the national flag and one Constitution following the abrogation of Article 370 by the Narendra Modi Government.
Accusing the Congress-National Conference alliance of attempting to revive the “old system” and pushing Jammu and Kashmir into terrorism and corruption, he said the NDA Government will not allow the revival of terrorism, “autonomy” and injustice with any community, including Gujjars, Paharis, Bakerwals and Dalits who were granted reservation by the BJP dispensation, he said.
“The upcoming elections in Jammu and Kashmir are historic because, after Independence, the polls are happening for the first time under our national flag and Constitution, unlike the past practice of two flags and two Constitutions. From Kashmir to Kanyakumari we have only one Prime Minister and he is Modi,” Shah said.
“The National Conference and the Congress will never be able to form a Government in J-K, be confident about it,” Shah said encouraging the workers to ensure the success of the party candidates to form the next Government.
He said this election is being held outside the shadow of Article 370. “We have seen its miracle in the Lok Sabha elections when 58.46 per cent of voters exercised their franchise unlike in the past when 10 per cent voting was being celebrated by the previous Governments in Delhi”.
“This is the biggest success of democracy,” he said, reiterating that there will be no talks with Pakistan till terrorism ends and peace is restored.
Lambasting the NC for its promise of releasing “stone-pelters and terrorists” from jails, that their aim is to revive terrorism in the peaceful Poonch, Rajouri and Doda districts of Jammu division. Kashmir has borne the brunt of terrorism because there were Governments that used to close their eyes and the people at the helm used to flee, he added.
“I am reading the writing on the wall that NC and Congress will never form a Government. They are the people who forced Maharaja Hari Singh to exile and only his ashes could be brought back after his death,” Shah said.
He said the goal of the BJP is overall development.
“I want to remind the youth of Kashmir that you gave power to them but Abdullah and his family fled to England in the face of terrorism while the youth fell to terrorism which we wiped out. Vote anyone you want but do not make them win as their agenda will bring back terrorism and stop development,” he added
Recounting the Modi Government’s works, Shah said it has spent over Rs 32,000 crore for the development of the Jammu region alone in the past 10 years.
Power projects worth over Rs 25,200 crore to generate 3,000 MW electricity and make Jammu and Kashmir surplus in electricity and boost development are underway, he informed the rally.
Shah said it was the BJP that fulfilled the aspirations and long-pending demands of the people of the Jammu region and mentioned the announcement of a holiday on the birth anniversary of the last Dogra ruler Maharaja Hari Singh to bolster his claim.
“Should those who insulted the Maharaja and forced him into exile win?” he posed while alleging that the NC-Congress alliance has a “divisive” agenda. “The NC-Congress wants to bring back the old system which means injustice, discrimination and corruption.”
“Do you agree with changing the name of Shankaracharya Hill (in Srinagar) to ‘Takht-e-Suleiman’? This is on their agenda,” he asked the gathering.
“The past when you had to fight for your rights and development through agitations has gone. You have seen the months-long Amarnath agitation (of 2008). The system was changed by the Modi Government and all your demands were met without any agitation or pleading,” Shah said.
The Home Minister also referred to the annual Amarnath Yatra and said over 5.12 lakh pilgrims from across the country offered their prayers at the shrine this year without any fear.
He credited the Modi dispensation for it and said the government has done a lot of work in the past 10 years besides restoring democracy at the grassroots level by holding local body elections.
At the rally, Shah talked about the 25 guarantees in the BJP manifesto and asked each party worker to ensure voting by their families along with three other families in favour of BJP candidates before 11 am on the polling days.
Earlier, he started his over half-an-hour speech by paying tribute to Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee, Pandit Prem Nath Dogra and Baba Daleep Singh Manhas and extended greetings to the nation on Ganesh Chaturthi and the Jain community on Paryushana Parva.
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