‘Cong failed to get more than 6 seats’
Avtar Bhat
JAMMU, Oct 9: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) senior leader and its election Incharge for J&K, Ram Madhav outrightly rejected NC vice president and party’s Chief Ministerial candidate , Omar Abdullah’s statement that verdict in Kashmir was against the BJP for abrogation of Article 370.
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Talking to a news channel, the senior BJP leader said that the statement of NC leader was not based on facts. He retorted saying “Let me tell Omar Abdullah that it was the rejection of his party’s stand on Article 370 in Jammu region also.”
He said that Omar Abdullah who earlier had said that his party will press for restoration of Article 370 has overnight taken a U-turn saying that Article 370 is not an issue for his Government and he took people of Kashmir for a ride.
Madhav said Omar wants to be the Chief Minister of Valley and Pir Panchal range as rest of Jammu has totally rejected him and his party. NC ‘s vote percentage is 23 percent in just concluded Assembly poll in J&K while BJP’s is over 25.64 percent. This means BJP got three percent more votes than NC, he added.
“We welcome his party and him for the mandate given to it but at the same time he (Omar) can’t say it was rejection of Centre and its policies on J&K”, Madhav said.
Madhav said Omar’s party has benefitted from division of votes in Kashmir. He said Congress which fought elections on the shoulders of NC in the UT could not get more that six seats while the party is in electoral politics of J&K for over six decades.
He said BJP lost Gurez Assembly seat in Bandipora district of North Kashmir by a margin of less than one thousand votes and said there is huge positivity for BJP in Valley, he added.
Rejecting that BJP is only a Hindu based party, Madhav said it is the party of 140 crore Indians that include Hindus who are in majority in the country. But it belongs to Muslims as well as Christians and other minorities also. He said had BJP been only a Hindu based party it would not have given reservations to Gujjars in Jammu and Kashmir. The reservation to them was not given for vote politics either. “We did it as Gujjars had reservations in rest of the country also so it was our stand why they should not get the reservations in J&K”, he added.
He maintained that there will be no misunderstanding with new J&K Government though it will be of our opponents. On the question of Omar Abdullah saying that both PM and Home Minister are gentle, the BJP leader said that those who say that PM and HM are gentle have themselves to behave like gentlemen. “The gentleness should be from both sides. Omar should maintain cordial relationship with Centre”, he added.
In response to another question about the Omar Abdullah’s statement on release of political detenues and restoration of Statehood to J&K, Madhav said so far the release of detenues is concerned this involves a legal process and some procedures need to be followed for the same. “They want all detenues to be released but whether he (Omar) will stand on it or not as he did yesterday. Earlier he talked of Article 370 and next day changed his stand,” BJP leader added.
Madhav said it is not the restoration of Statehood as they say. The UT is now to be converted in to the State. Earlier, two UTs were carved out of J&K State and now the UT of J&K has to be converted into State and the new Chief Minister has to approach the Government of India and Prime Minister in this regard who can take a decision.
Madhav on joining of Jamaat people in election fray in the J&K said that Indian democracy allows any body to come and participate in elections. “It is an open democracy. Earlier they boycotted polls. They threaten and intimidate people taking part in elections. But this time they did not boycott poll but joined elections”, he added.
The BJP leader said Democracy and elections are similar,. The moment you file the nomination papers, you take the oath on the name of Indian Constitution. So they are ready to show allegiance to Indian Constitution. They showed the whole world that India is a real democracy”, he added.
He said if a party or group of people want to join Indian democratic process they can’t be denied. Their joining the election process is a significant development, he added.
On the role of RSS in elections and its support to BJP, Madhav said that RSS is a non political organisation but it never got vote for BJP alone though RSS and BJP have same thought process. But the organisation is concerned for what challenges the people of country face. The organisation works for the welfare of the people and similar role they played in Haryana which helped BJP, he added.
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