NEW DELHI: Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh said here on thursday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had accomplished Congress Party’s unfinished agenda in Jammu & Kashmir.
In an exclusive interview with “India News” Editor-in-Chief Rana Yashwant, Dr Jitendra Singh said, Article 370 had been included in the Indian Constitution as a “temporary provision”, a fact which was emphasised by none less than the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru who had responded to Syama Prasad Mookerjee’s objections saying “Ye Ghiste Ghiste Ghis Jayegi”. However, Nehru’s successors developed a vested interest in the continuance of Article 370 which helped them in establishing dynasty rule generation after generation both in New Delhi as well as in J&K.
By abrogating Article 370, Prime Minister Modi fulfilled a promise which the Congress Party had made to the nation but had backed away from it as it has done in case of many other promises made by it, he said.
“People share a bond of heart with Prime Minister Modi for his honest objective outreach providing welfare benefits to the needy without consideration of caste,creed, religion or vote bank”, said Dr. Jitendra Singh.
Dr Jitendra Singh referred to the change in mindset of people post 5th August 2019 marking the abrogation of Article 370. He said ” It was a temporary provision but the Congress led regimes did not have the courage to remove it and their vested interest allowed it to stay on for 70 years. It was the leadership of Prime Minister Modi which brought the unfinished business of previous regimes to task”.
Dr. Jitendra Singh categorically mentioned that refugees from Pakistan were deliberately denied citizenship for 70 years. This was not only a violation of constitutional rights but also of democratic rights. Adding further he said that after witnessing the development in the valley, people in the illegally occupied part of J&K (PoJK) want to be a part of India.
The Union Minister also recalled that PM Modi believes in justice rather than appeasement and several deprived sections have now got their rights. Children from the most disadvantaged sections of Valmikis in J&K can also now aspire to take up top jobs in the country due to a level playing field, he said.
“Development is our main plank to seek votes based on the progress in the past 10 years” says Science & Technology Minister. He said though there is a significance of article 370 in the general election campaigning while important agenda remains development which has taken place in J&K in the last ten years in a very balanced way without any regional discrimination and without any appeasement politics. All aid from the Centre was distributed in a balanced way to bring development into the mainstream. Now the region has IIT,IIMS, AIIMS, half a dozen centrally funded medical colleges, national level schemes, the world’s highest bridge, S P Mukherjee Road Tunnel, passport offices, Ist Industrial Biotech park in northern India in the constituency.
Dr Jitendra Singh said, “people who were not voting for BJP earlier, but have become beneficiaries of different Modi schemes now, are also going through a change of mindset”.
On the issue of inheritance tax featuring in Congress manifesto, Dr Singh said wealth tax is alien to the democratic values and Indian ethos. It is not compatible with the Indian family system, culture, and heritage as it will take away 50 percent of the wealth from the family after the death of a person. He added that it is the part of appeasement approach of Congress towards certain sections of the society for vote bank and Prime Minister Modi is trying to make people alert in this regard. The Congress party is trying last election tricks but the voters have moved on and they understand the real intent of Congress, he said.
He stated that BJP has no relations with PDP or INDI alliance in Jammu and Kashmir.
