J&K will get statehood, time not far for Assembly poll: PM Modi in Udhampur

Arjun Sharma

Jammu, April 12

Assuring that Jammu and Kashmir will soon get statehood and an elected government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said the Lok Sabha elections would take place in the UT without the fear of terrorism, strikes, stone-pelting and cross-border firing.

Addressing a rally in favour of BJP candidate and Union Minister Jitendra Singh in Udhampur, Modi said he had fulfilled his promise of putting an end to the long sufferings of the people of J&K and challenged the Congress and other opposition parties to bring back Article 370, which was revoked by the BJP-led Centre in August 2019.

“People will not be ready to see their face again (if they say this). They used to say if Article 370 is scrapped, J&K will not remain a part of India. But the local youth have showed them the mirror. Now they are saying the country did not benefit from the abrogation of Article 370. But the people of J&K know the reality,” Prime Minister Modi said. He said when he came here almost 10 years ago, he had told people to show confidence in him so that the problems being faced by them for over 60 years could be resolved. “Now lakhs of families in J&K have the guarantee of free ration and free treatment up to Rs 5 lakh. There were many villages here where there were no roads or water, but it is not the case today. Even the remote mountainous areas have got digital connectivity,” the PM said.

“There used to be a concern regarding the security of Vaishno Devi and Amarnath pilgrimages, but the situation has changed altogether. J&K is witnessing development and the people’s faith in the government is getting strengthened,” he said.

Criticising the opposition, the PM said for decades, weak governments of the Congress had delayed Shahpurkandi dam even as the agricultural fields turned dry. “Our share of water from the Ravi was going to Pakistan, but I gave a guarantee to the farmers and the project was completed. Thousands of farmers from Kathua and Samba have benefitted. Not only this, electricity generated through this project will be used by the people of J&K,” he said.

The PM said the Congress, NC, PDP and others wanted to take J&K back to the earlier days. “These dynastic parties have damaged J&K to a great extent. For power, they created a wall of Article 370. An illusion was created regarding it, but we destroyed this wall. Even the debris of that wall has been removed,” he said.

He claimed that Ram Mandir was not being used for political gains by the BJP. Earlier addressing a rally in Barmer, the PM alleged the INDIA bloc was trying to weaken the country. “The Congress manifesto has a stamp of the Muslim League, which was the culprit of Partition,” he reiterated. “Modi is working hard to make India a powerful nation, but the members of the INDIA bloc are trying to make India weak,” he alleged.

‘Revere Constitution, no one can destroy it’

Amid Oppn charge of BJP trying to ‘destroy’ Constitution, PM at a rally in Barmer said BJP revered it and even Babasaheb wouldn’t have been able to abolish it now

hits out at oppn’s ‘mughal mentality’

On clips ‘showing Oppn leaders eating non-veg during Navratri’, PM said, “It showed their Mughal mentality who derived pleasure by hurting feelings of people”

Omar to contest from Baramulla

Former J&K CM Omar Abdullah will contest elections from Baramulla LS seat, the NC announced on Friday. This will be his first LS poll since 2009. His main opponent will be People’s Conference chief Sajad Gani Lone.

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