SRINAGAR: Senior BJP leader and former Deputy chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Kavinder Gupta said that due to historic mistakes Jammu Kashmir is suffering right now.
While speaking to News Agency Press Trust of Kashmir Gupta said in very clear terms that, “Article 370, a temporary transitional provision, is the biggest injustice with the people of Jammu and Kashmir, while the Article 35A is a constitutional blunder which was included through back door without the consent of Parliament and the president, We wish the early abrogation of both these constitutional provisions”.
Gupta said that the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution continues to be part of the party’s core ideology and it will work in that direction whenever it garners the required numbers in Parliament.
“As far as the abrogation of Article 370 is concerned, it continues to be part of the core ideology of BJP, but right now we don’t have enough numbers in Parliament to do away with it … but in future when we have the required numbers we will work towards its removal,” Kavinder Gupta said.
Repealing Article 370, which grants special status to the state of Jammu & Kashmir, would require a two-thirds majority in Parliament as the Constitution would have to be amended.
He said “People in Kashmir want development, for that we need to remove article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir”.
When asked will it be possible for BJP to remove article from constitution Gupta said No question because removal of Article 370 has been the core conviction of our party, right from the beginning. We are all committed to removal of Article 370 because we see it as a big hindrance in the process of emotional integration of the people of Kashmir valley with the rest of the country. It creates an emotional barrier.
In earlier assertions, former chief ministers Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti have said that any move to tinker with or abrogate Article 370 would automatically render J&K’s accession with India invalid.
Even People’s Conference chief Sajjad Lone have publicly opposed all suggestions from the saffron party’s ideologues that there ought to be a review or a debate on the validity or need for the special provisions.
And while neither Shah nor the PM have said anything specific after the declaration of results and formation of the new government, state politicians like Ravinder Raina have evidently got the green flag to speak up. Quick off the mark on May 26, the BJP’s J&K chief called on Delhi to fulfil the promise made to the people of India and J&K: ”
Article 370, a temporary [and] transitional provision, is the biggest injustice to the people of Jammu and Kashmir, while Article 35A is a constitutional blunder which was brought in through the back door without the consent of Parliament. We wish the early abrogation of both these constitutional provisions,” Riana declared in Jammu. (PTK)
