Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the statehood was snatched because the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wanted to run the region through the LG and outsiders.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday reiterated the promise of restoring Jammu and Kashmir (J&K)’s statehood, saying they would fight for it in Parliament as well as take to the streets.
He said the statehood was snatched because the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) wanted to run the region through the lieutenant governor (LG) and outsiders to end the prosperity of the people. “Until the lieutenant governor is here, outsiders will continue to get benefits at the expense of the people of J&K,” he said at a rally in Jammu.
The rally coincided with the second phase of the first assembly elections in J&K since 2014. J&K was divided into two Union territories when the region was stripped of its semi-autonomous status under the Constitution’s Article 370 in August 2019.
He said the elections in J&K were all about people’s rights. “We will ensure statehood and then the government will protect local industries. The doors of banks will be opened for common people.”
He said there have been instances in the country’s history since 1947 wherein Union territories were made states and states divided into two but never was a state downgraded to a Union territory. “It was grave injustice with the people,” he said.
Gandhi said J&K’s democratic rights were snatched. “We thought that the statehood would be restored before elections and it was the right way but they went for polls first,” he said.
He promised to apply the entire might of the Opposition Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) if the BJP did not return the statehood. “If the BJP did not do it for any reason, then the first job under the INDIA government will be to give statehood because this is your right.”
Gandhi alleged the BJP government continued to work for the two prominent business tycoons. “While the entire government worked for Ambani and Adani, two weapons GST [Goods and Services Tax] and demonetisation were used to clear the way for these two billionaires at the cost of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).” He claimed the government waived the debts of 25 billionaires at the cost of poor people. “…wrong decisions like demonetisation and GST destroyed the MSME sector that gave jobs to the people. As a result, employment is not available to the youth,” he said.
Gandhi described Jammu as the hub for businesses and the link between Kashmir and the rest of the county. “I just met professionals and entrepreneurs, they told me how the spine of the MSME sector has been broken here [Jammu].” He added unless small and medium businesses stand on their feet, employment will not be available.
