New Delhi, July 1
Protesting against the Jammu and Kashmir government’s decision to revoke the order to allot 40 hectares of land to Shri Amarnath Shrine Board (SASB), the BJP today called for a nationwide strike on July 3 alleging that the decision amounted to total surrender to fundamentalist and separatist forces.
A decision to observe the strike was taken during a central office bearers’ meeting convened by BJP president Rajnath Singh this evening. “The decision to revoke the order is nothing but surrender, like Congress regime did in the Shah Bano case,” Singh told mediapersons after the meeting.
Earlier, the J&K government today revoked the land allotted to SASB sparking off protests from the VHP, BJP and Sangh Parivar outfits.
The BJP would organise protest rallies in major cities and towns of the country from July 4 to 11. Singh said the BJP firmly stood for abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution, which accorded a special status to the most geographically sensitive state of the country.
He said the JK government’s decision, at the behest of the Congress-led UPA government at the Centre, was against the basic tenets of secularism and Parliament had always unanimously approved all spending meant for any religious group, be it for the Haj Yatra or for the Urs festivals.
Urging for restoration of land allotted to the SASB for creating temporary infrastructure for Amarnath pilgrims, the BJP president said environmental degradation argument would not hold water as such arguments were placed before the J&K High Court.
The allotment was made after securing clearances from the forest and environment departments and the SASB had even paid a lease amount of Rs 2.5 crore to the state government. “To cancel the allotment at this stage, buckling under pressure of the separatist elements, was totally unfair,” he said.
To a question regarding the suggestion to reconstitute the SASB, Singh said it was important to know who was making this demand and for what purpose.
He said that he had spoken to Union home minister Shivraj Patil and sought his intervention in the matter.
— Agencies
