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‘Rahul Gandhi ki saat pidhiyan bhi…’: Shivraj Chouhan's slams Congress MP, Farooq Abdullah on Article 370
J&K polls: Chouhan accused Congress-NC alliance of diverting public attention from pressing issues such as employment, food, education, health, and development.
Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan hit out at opposition leaders Farooq Abdullah of the National Conference (NC) and Rahul Gandhi of the Congress saying “not even their generations can bring Article 370 back in Jammu and Kashmir", news agency ANI reported.
The senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader, addressing a rally in Jammu amid the ongoing assembly poll of Jammu and Kashmir, said, “Today, I want to say that 'Farooq Abdullah aur Rahul Gandhi ki saat pidhiyan (generations) bhi Article 370 nahi la sakti' (even the generations of Farooq Abdullah and Rahul Gandhi cannot bring back Article 370)... the BJP government is there.”
Shivraj Singh Chouhan accused the Congress-NC alliance in the Union territory of diverting public attention from pressing issues such as employment, food, education, health, and development.
“We say what we do. Our goal is to change the fate of the people, to bring happiness into your lives, to bring smiles to your faces, and for you to live your life in peace. But what are they saying? They are saying that if our government comes to power, we will abolish Article 370. Rahul Baba, even the NC leaders cannot abolish Article 370. Is this the issue, brothers and sisters? Our issue is employment, food, education, health, and development. They are leading us in the wrong direction,” Chouhan said.
What has Opposition said
Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi reiterated on Wednesday the Opposition will exert all its efforts to pressure the Centre into restoring Jammu and Kashmir's statehood. Speaking at a public rally in Sopore, Rahuil Gandhi said for the first time in history, “a state has been downgraded to a union territory” which he deemed an injustice to the people of the region, asserting that the INDIA bloc will fight for its restoration.
“We wanted that the statehood be restored before elections. All the people of Jammu and Kashmir wanted the elections to take place after the restoration of the statehood. The first and foremost issue is regarding your statehood. Several UTs have been made states, and states have been bifurcated. But this is the first time in history that a state has been turned into a Union Territory. It did not happen, the first step is election. But after this, the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir has to be restored,” Rahul Gandhi said.
Meanwhile, Farooq Abdullah reiterated on Monday his party would continue to fight a legal battle for the restoration of Article 370. He criticised the BJP, calling the Centre’s decision “unilateral” and “unjust", which he claimed brought hardships to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. The NC pledged to advocate for Articles 370 and 35A in their manifesto.
The BJP revoked the contentious region's special status by abrogating Article 370, rescinding its statehood, and dividing it into two Union territories on August 5, 2019.
Jammu and Kashmir assembly poll
The assembly election in Jammu and Kashmir are being held in three phases. The second phase of voting took place on Wednesday, covering 26 constituencies across six districts of the Union Territory, with a voter turnout of over 57 per cent.
The first phase, conducted on September 18, recorded a voter turnout of 61.13 per cent across 24 constituencies in seven districts, according to the Election Commission.
Voting for the third phase is scheduled for October 1, with vote counting set for October 8, coinciding with the counting of votes in Haryana.
