Tag: Kashmir statehood

  • Delimitation will happen first, restoration of J&K statehood thereafter: Amit Shah in Srinagar

    By Agencies

    SRINAGAR: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday said that the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir will be restored after the delimitation of constituencies and assembly elections.

    Shah, who is on a three-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, was interacting with members of Jammu and Kashmir’s youth clubs on Saturday.

    “Why should the delimitation be stopped? It is because that will harm political interests. Now nothing will stop in Kashmir. Delimitation will happen, followed by elections and then restoration of statehood so that the youth of Kashmir get opportunities. I had said that in the parliament also. And, this is the roadmap. I came here to make friends with the Kashmiri youth,” Shah said.

    He said no one can obstruct development in Jammu and Kashmir and asserted that strict action will be taken against those who want to disrupt the peace and harmony in the union territory.

    “Kashmir has seen a new beginning — from fear, terrorism, corruption, and family-based politics to peace, development, and prosperity. The youth of Jammu and Kashmir have strengthened this change. Terrorism has reduced, stone-pelting has become invisible…I want to assure you that strict action will be taken against those who want to disrupt the peace and harmony of Jammu and Kashmir. No one can obstruct development here. It is our commitment,” Shah said.

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    The minister said that “transparency and corruption-free governance” Jammu-Kashmir has witnessed since 2019 is the pillar of the region’s development. “Would it be possible without abrogating Article 370? Our projects for Jammu and Kashmir are multidimensional. It promotes education and skill development, as well as economic assistance. We’ve also promoted sports and tourism,” he said.

    The government had abrogated Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019. It had also bifurcated Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories. Shah said the government in Jammu and Kashmir has decided to form a youth club in every panchayat and Rs 25,000 will be provided to every such club. Sports programmes have also been started.

    Slamming the earlier regimes in the erstwhile state, Shah said, “What did the previous governments give to Jammu and Kashmir in 70 years? 87 MLAs, 6 MPs and 3 families…Prime Minister Narendra Modiji has made it possible that about 30,000 elected representatives in the Panchayat elections, who are serving the people today. Post-independence, the Government of India helped Jammu and Kashmir, but the poverty, unemployment did not go away, infrastructure did not develop. Now poverty is going from here, people are getting employment opportunities.”

    Earlier in the day, Shah held a security review meeting in Srinagar. Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha was present in the review meeting. This is Shah’s maiden visit to the union territory since the abrogation of Article 370. 

  • Ghulam Nabi Azad optimistic Centre would not reject demand for restoration of statehood in J-K before polls

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad on Sunday expressed optimism that the Centre would not reject the demand of the mainstream political parties in Jammu and Kashmir for restoration of statehood before the polls, adding the union territory status of the erstwhile state was “not acceptable” to anyone.

    Azad, who was part of a 14-member delegation from J and K that had a key meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Thursday, said the dialogue process “was only a beginning” and now it was up to the Centre to build trust and confidence in the erstwhile state.

    “One thing was there that everybody was asked to speak frankly. I think all the leaders spoke very frankly and the important thing is there was no ill will towards anyone,” Azad, a former chief minister, told PTI in an interview.

    Azad, 72, said he had made it clear at the meeting that the union territory status of Jammu and Kashmir is not acceptable for which every political leader extended support.

    Besides Azad, three other former chief ministers Farooq Abdullah, Omar Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti were also part of the multi-party delegation.

    “So, we have made our point clear. The only thing that we wanted was that first statehood should be restored and then elections should be held. Of course, they (Centre) have not responded but a joint stand of all the political parties was that first statehood should be granted, full-fledged statehood, and then it should be followed by elections,” Azad said.

    Asked what are the chances that the Centre would agree to the statehood first demand, Azad, who was leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, said he was optimistic, asserting “at least they have not said no”.

    “And I think things have changed now. The amount of time the prime minister gave, the words he used that forget the past now. And the meeting gave a great opportunity to understand concerns and issues,” he added.

    The meeting had lasted for nearly three-and-a-half hours.

    “I think the way the prime minister spoke saying that forget the past and we have to bring peace and build new bridges of confidence between Delhi and Jammu and Kashmir is important.”

    Azad said the prime minister made it clear that he would like the politics to be run by all those political parties who were present and that he would extend cooperation.

    “I don’t think that the prime minister will do or the home minister will do anything contrary to that which is not acceptable to them (politicians from J-K).”

    Nearly two years after the bifurcation of Jammu and Kashmir into two UTs and revocation of its special status, Prime Minister Modi held talks with top political leaders from the erstwhile state, and said the Centre’s priority is to strengthen grassroots democracy there for which delimitation has to happen quickly so that polls can be held.

    Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who was also present at the meeting, had also tweeted to say the delimitation exercise and holding of peaceful elections in J and K are important milestones in restoring statehood as promised in Parliament.

    To a question whether calling politicians from the erstwhile state for the meeting reflected a change of policy by the Centre, Azad said “to be very frank, I don’t know whether there was any policy because I did not come across any policy.”

    He said removing special status, downgrading the state to union territory and taking away the security and houses of opposition leaders can’t be a policy.

    “As such they(Centre) did not have any policy which is why the state suffered most…having no policy.”

    “If you remove one system, that was not replaced by another system. You removed the ministers, you dissolved the government, you removed the MLAs. Can officers take the place of ministers, can officers take the place of MLAs, can officers go and attend public meetings and public hearings, can officers reach out on a daily basis and be available for 10 to 12 hours? The answer is no. The entire system was killed and it was not replaced by anything,” he said.

    Asked about the stand of the Congress party on revocation of Article 370 that granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir, he began by saying two things happened on August 5,2019 — downgrading the state and dividing it into two union territories of J and K and Ladakh and abrogation of Article 370.

    “So, since it (Article 370) is before the Supreme Court, we will not like to mention anything publicly about that, and of course the statehood issue is not before the Supreme Court and that is why we are asking for it,” he said.

    And to a question about the prime minister’s assertion of reducing ‘Dil ki doori’ (distance of hearts), Azad said the Centre needs to take immediate steps.

    At the landmark meeting, Prime Minister Modi had said he wants to remove “Dilli ki doori” (distance from Delhi) as well as “Dil ki doori” (distance between hearts) in an effort to bring Delhi closer to the people of J and K.

    “It will take time but they should initiate, he said, adding first and foremost the Centre should treat every political party on equal footing and restore security to all political leaders from whom it was taken away post August 5, 2019.”

    The second would be to provide relief to business communities in Jammu as well as in Kashmir, he added.

    Azad also made a strong pitch at the meeting for rehabilitation of Kashmiri pandits in the Valley and asked all political parties to step forward to ensure this objective.

    “The major question is how to take Kashmiri pandits back to Valley and progress with other Muslim brothers and sisters. I made it clear that it is the moral duty of all political parties — not only the ruling party but also the opposition — take them and rehabilitate them in the Valley and the Centre should initiate the process for this and all political parties will support that,” he said.

    Around 60,000 families of minority Kashmiri Pandits had to leave the Valley with the onset of militancy in 1990’s and migrate to places like Jammu, Delhi and other parts of the country.

  • Jammu & Kashmir wants restoration of statehood: Pakistan minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi

    By Express News Service
    NEW DELHI: Reacting to Prime Minister Narendra Modi holding a meeting of all political parties of Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi on Friday said Kashmiris wanted restoration of statehood.

    Terming Modi’s claim of fulfilling the statehood demand as vague and against the wishes of Kashmiris, Qureshi said, “This (holding the meeting) was a failed attempt on part of the Indian Prime Minister to mend the tarnished image of his government following the illegal acts of revocation of special status of J&K.”

    The meeting almost lasted three hours. This was the first such meeting held after August 5, 2019 when the Centre had revoked Article 370 and ended the special status granted to Jammu and Kashmir while bifurcating it into two union territories.

    “India has exercised all tools of State oppression to curb the determination of Kashmiris, however it has failed to subjugate them,” the Pakistan foreign minister said and added that the decision had resulted in the closure of almost 50 per cent of the industries in the Valley.

    “Since the step (revoking Article 370) would have far-reaching implications, Pakistan has highlighted the matter at highest fora including UNGA, UNSC, at the levels of PM and foreign minister at various bilateral talks and at the Geneva Council of Human Rights,” he added.

  • Day after meeting PM Modi on Jammu & Kashmir, parties push for statehood before elections

    Express News Service
    SRINAGAR/NEW DELHI: A day after the Centre unveiled its roadmap for the resumption of the democratic process in J&K, leaders of several parties said restoration of statehood must precede Assembly elections, while PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti claimed she would not enter the fray till special status under Article 370 is restored, though her party would.

    Explaining her rationale, Mehbooba said, “Otherwise they will say I am doing it for political gains. If PDP wins the polls, I will not be chief minister.” However, she said that her party would contest the polls as it cannot leave any democratic space otherwise it will be taken away by other forces.

    Mehbooba is the third J&K leader to decide not to contest polls. NC vice-president Omar Abdullah and another party leader Aga Ruhullah have already made their entering the fray conditional to the restoration of full statehood.

    ALSO READ| PM’s meeting with J-K leaders ‘positive’ step; Centre must restore statehood before assembly polls: Karan Singh

    Senior National Conference leader and Gupkar Alliance coordinator Justice (Retd) Hasnain Masoodi said holding of polls while J&K remains a Union Territory is not acceptable. “In Assam, they kept on hold the delimitation process and held Assembly elections while here they say delimitation will precede elections (while it remains a UT),” he pointed out.

    Another NC leader Imran Nabi Dar said the party’s position is clear: grant of statehood should be the first confidence building measure of the Centre.

    Articulating the stand of the Congress, senior party leader P Chidambaram said: “Congress and other J&K parties and leaders want statehood first and elections afterwards. Government’s response is elections first and statehood later. The horse pulls the cart. A state must conduct elections. Only such elections will be free and fair. Why does the government want the cart in front and the horse behind? It is bizarre.”

    ALSO READ| Delimitation, holding of polls in J-K important milestones in restoring statehood: Amit Shah

    Senior CPM leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, who is also spokesperson of the Gupkar Alliance, told this newspaper that they had not attended the all-party meet in Delhi for holding elections. “None of us had gone there to demand elections,Tarigami said.

    Union home minister Amit Shah had on Thursday told the all-party meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that while the Centre is committed to restoring statehood, it will happen after the delimitation process and the Assembly elections are over. “We did not get answers to our concerns. The PM did not offer anything concrete in terms of assurances,” Tarigami said.

    Different strokes

    CentreStatehood to J&K to follow delimitation exercise and Assembly elections

    National ConferenceWants restoration of statehood before J&K goes to polls

    PDPState polls after restoration of special status under Article 370