Parl passes Rs 1.12 lakh cr worth budget for J&K
Home Department given 10 pc of overall budget, not 80 pc
FM lists 7 major killings of KPs during NC-Cong Govt in 1989
Sanjeev Pargal
JAMMU, Mar 23: Parliament today approved Rs 1,12,950 crore worth budget for Jammu and Kashmir as Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said justice, democracy and economic development have been reaching to people of the Union Territory even as she directly blamed National Conference-Congress for exodus of the minorities by listing seven major killings of Kashmiri Pandits during tenure of Dr Farooq Abdullah and charged Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, first Prime Minister of the country, for internationalizing the Kashmir issue.
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Lok Sabha had passed Jammu and Kashmir budget on March 14 while the Rajya Sabha gave its nod today after an hour-long reply by Sitharaman to four-hour long debate yesterday.
She said Rs 10,831 crore have been earmarked for Home Department in Jammu and Kashmir budget which is 10 percent of overall budget and there was misunderstanding that 80 percent of total budget is being spent on Home.
“Justice, democracy and economic development have been reaching to the people of Jammu and Kashmir post abrogation of Article 370,” she said.
Rebutting the Opposition’s charge that the BJP too shared responsibility for failure to check the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits in 1990 as it was supporting the then V P Singh-led Government at the Centre, Sitharaman said that terror killings were being carried out in Kashmir before 1990 when the National Conference was in power in J-K in alliance with the Congress and recalled the then Governor Jagmohan’s warning about dark clouds of terror overpowering the Valley.
She listed out “seven major killings” of minorities by militants in 1989 along with the related FIR numbers and said they took place when Dr Farooq Abdullah was the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir heading NC-Congress coalition Government.
The killings mentioned by the Finance Minister include Prabhawati of Chadoora, Dinanath Raina from Habbakadal, Retired Judge Neelkanth Ganju who had sentenced Maqbool Bhat, Vijay Kumar and Tika Lal Taploo of Maharajgunj and Advocate Prem Nath Bhat of Qazi Mir Ali.
Sitharaman mentioned FIR Nos of the killings and took names of Police Stations where the cases were registered in 1989.
She also referred to the kidnapping of the daughter of then Union Home Minister (Mufti Mohammad Sayeed) in December 1989 and failure of the then State Government to take any steps to control law and order situation.
During the discussion, the Congress party had accused the BJP of supporting the V P Singh-led Government at the Centre in 1990 when Kashmiri Pandits were forced to leave the Valley after they were targeted by terrorists.
“I just want to put the facts on record. The National Conference Government with the support of the Indian National Congress was in power in J&K from November 1986 to January 18, 1990. And Governor Jagmohan reached J&K (on January 20, 1990) after the resignation of the then Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah,” the Minister said.
The Finance Minister also told the Opposition that Governor Jagmohan (in his first tenure) in July 1989 had warned the then State Government regarding the danger of terrorism.
“Is it not true that even Jagmohan, in his first phase of being Governor when he was asked to leave in July 1989, had warned authorities at that time itself that the dark cloud of militants are really overpowering J&K, and necessary steps have to be taken by the State Government,” the Minister said.
While she was referring to the killings of 1989, certain opposition members asked her to focus her reply on the budget. To this, Sitharaman said even the speeches of Opposition members too were focused on ‘The Kashmir Files’ (movie) and not on the Budget, therefore, she has every right to reply on all issues.
Charging Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, first Prime Minister of the country with internationalizing Kashmir issue, the Finance Minister said it was he (Nehru) who took the issue to United Nations in 1947 when the issue could have been well handled by the country just as the present Government is handling it.
“And our neighbour (a reference towards Pakistan) is still misusing it,” she said.
“It was Nehru who internationalised the Kashmir issue. He took it to the United Nations in December 1947. Why? This issue shouldn’t have gone to a global forum. It’s an Indian issue. We could’ve handled it, we are handling it, and we are showing the difference now,” she said.
Senior Congress leader Anand Sharma, however, said: “I would like to set the record straight. If the matter was taken to the UN Security Council, the issue was whether there would be a cessation of the military conflict or not. India did not accept the plebiscite.”
“The UN Observers’ Office was never given that sanctity. India conducted elections. There were elected Governments in the State of Jammu & Kashmir. Not only that, we fought wars and we made it very clear repeatedly, and this has been India’s consistent position, prior to 2014, that Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are an integral part of the sovereign State of India,” he added.
Sitharaman criticised the Congress for questioning the removal of Article 370 and quoted Prime Minister Nehru’s reply in Parliament in 1963 that ‘Article 370 is part of a certain transitional provisional arrangement. It is not a permanent part of the Constitution.’
“For 70 years that transitional arrangement remained and when we removed it, you should have gone by what Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru had said in 1963 and supported it,” she told Congress members.
Stressing that from Jan Sangh days their manifestos have spoken about the abrogation of Article 370, Sitharaman said, “It was a promise given to the people of the country and we have fulfilled it.”
Alleging that there was a “mess” in the State earlier resulting in injustice to people, she said, “After the abrogation of Article 370, you see justice, democracy, economic development, rights reaching everybody”.
She said that people are benefiting after the implementation of 890 Central Laws in the UT. Also, people, who did not have any rights there earlier, can now get Government jobs and purchase properties.
Besides, she added, 250 “unjust and discriminatory” State laws have been removed, and 137 modified.
She told the members that the de-weeding and dredging of Srinagar’s famous Dal Lake will be taken up in the next financial year
Sitharaman said after abrogation of Article 370, terror related activities have declined in Jammu and Kashmir, and an environment for investment has been created.
“The various impediments which prevailed in the State for industrial development have also been removed, and the industrial promotion scheme of J & K given by Government of India has opened new doors for the development in J & K,” Sitharaman said.
Currently, a delegation from the Gulf Cooperation countries is looking at possibilities of increasing their investment in the Union Territory
Referring to the law and order situation, she said there has been an overall decline in terror activities.
She said there has been a 33 per cent drop in infiltration in 2021, 90 per cent decrease in ceasefire violations, 61 per cent decline in terrorism related incidents, and 80 per cent fall in abductions by terrorists.
Also, there has been 33 per cent decline in number of police and security personnel who were martyred in 2021 over the previous year.
Further, she said there was no incident of weapon snatching in 2021 and even 2022 as far as now.
Sitharaman also referred to the number of terrorists killed. She said 180 terrorists (148 locals and 32 foreigners, including 44 top commanders) were eliminated in 2021.
She also informed that 100 per cent COVID vaccination of eligible population has been achieved in J&K.
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