E-Paper
Ram Madhav’s Kashmir visit amid killing of BJP leaders and a political churn
Ram Madhav’s visit is being considered an important one by the regional unit.
BJP general secretary Ram Madhav will be in Kashmir on Thursday to meet party leaders and workers at a time when several BJP leaders in Jammu and Kashmir have been targeted by terrorists and a political churning is taking place with prominent parties in the valley jointly pressing for restoration of Article 370 and statehood.
National Conference, Peoples Democratic Party, Peoples Conference, ANC and the CPI (M) have announced a joint political battle for the restoration of Article 370 and 35A; the constitution of Jammu and Kashmir and its statehood. The leaders of these mainstream political parties had signed the Gupkar declaration last year on August 4, a day before Article 370 was revoked by the parliament and the erstwhile state was divided into two UT’s.
On the other hand, an important two-day meeting of Altaf Bukhari’s newly launched Apni Party is also underway and is expected to take a stand on the Gupkar declaration. The meeting started on Wednesday afternoon.
Also Read: Kashmir leaders resolve to fight for restoration of Article 370 and J-K statehood
Sources in the know of the agenda of Ram Madhav’s visit said that BJP general secretary will arrive in Srinagar in the afternoon and chair a meeting of party leaders to discuss current political situation and issues regarding Jammu and Kashmir.
The issue of security of BJP leaders is also likely to come up in the meeting with Madhav. In the last two months, five prominent BJP leaders were killed by militants in different parts of Kashmir.
“Our leaders are on target of the militants, so the issue related to the security of BJP leaders and panchayat members will be taken up with BJP general secretary,” said BJP state spokesman Altaf Thakur. He added that it was an important visit and many issues will be discussed with the party general secretary.
