Congress says it’s not part of Gupkar alliance

The Congress on Tuesday said it was neither a part of the Gupkar Alliance nor the six-party bloc of the People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) in Jammu & Kashmir, hours after Union home minister Amit Shah asked the party to clear its stand on whether it is backing the alliance that is seeking to restore Article 370 in the erstwhile state.

In a statement, Congress’s chief spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala accused Shah of making mischievous statements on Jammu & Kashmir and insisted that the Congress would never compromise on the country’s territorial integrity.

“The Congress is neither part of Gupkar Alliance nor PAGD. Will Mr Amit Shah bother to explain why the BJP formed a coalition government with the PDP that he is now attacking?” he asked.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had on June 19, 2018, ended its almost 40-month-old alliance with the Mehbooba Mufti-led People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and withdrew its support to her government citing irreconcilable differences.

“To spread lies, fraud and creating new illusions have become the way of the [Narendra] Modi government. It’s a shame that the home minister is keeping aside the responsibility of the national security and is making false, misleading and mischievous statements on Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh,” Surjewala said.

He said the Congress was never in favour of international intervention on the Kashmir issue and the party was committed to the country’s integrity, sovereignty and the tricolour.

The Congress leader also asked Shah to explain who was responsible for the release of Jaish-e-Mohammed founder Masood Azhar, released along with two others in exchange for the passengers of hijacked Indian Airlines plane IC-814 in Afghanistan’s Kandahar in December 1999, and why it allowed Pakistan’s Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) to visit the Pathankot air base following a terror attack.

“Congress doesn’t need any lesson in nationalism from parties that were slaves or stooges of the British Empire. The nation still remembers the sacrifices of its leaders, including Mahatma Gandhi, former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi,” Surjewala said.

“May be Amit Shah and the Narendra Modi government need new lessons in patriotism and national as their parent organisation, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), never hoisted the national tri-colour for 52 years at its headquarters,” he added.

Surjewala said the Congress is fighting the district development council (DDC) polls because it favours democratic elections in Jammu & Kashmir.