Stepping up his attack on the BJP-led central government, Congress MP and Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said that they snatched statehood of Jammu and Kashmir so that it can be governed by outsiders.
Rahul Gandhi said that for the first time in history, a state was downgraded into a ‘union territory’ and injustice was served to the people of the territory.
“In the history of India, after 1947 several union territories were turned into states. States were divided – Telangana was formed out of Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand was formed out of Bihar, Chhattisgarh was carved out of Madhya Pradesh. But for the first time after independence, a state was turned into a union territory. This was done to Jammu & Kashmir. This is an injustice to you. Your democratic rights have been snatched away from you. Today Jammu and Kashmir, is not run by the people of Jammu and Kashmir, it is run by the people of other states,” said Rahul Gandhi while addressing a public rally in Jammu.
Hitting out at the BJP and Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, Gandhi said that as long as LG is here, the outsiders will get benefits and the people of the Jammu and Kashmir will be side-lined
“Jammu is hub for Kashmir’s businesses, production and it connects Kashmir with the nation. BJP government and LG have tarnished this role. They have tarnished the backbones (small businesses) of Jammu, which results in unemployment. As long as small and medium businesses of Jammu will not stand on their own capacity, the unemployment rate will stand still. As long as LG is here, the outsiders will get benefits and the people of the Jammu and Kashmir will be side-lined and one of the reasons to snatch your statehood. They want to outsiders to run J-K and not people of Jammu and Kashmir.
Rahul Gandhi assured that INDIA alliance will use all its strength if the BJP didn’t agree to return statehood to Jammu and Kashmir.
He stated, “We had thought that you would get back the statehood before elections. That would have been the correct way. But it is fine that they are conducting elections first. But we want your democratic rights, the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir is given back to you. This was done for the first time in history of India and it should never be done with any other state. I assure you if BJP didn’t return your statehood, we, the leaders of INDIA alliance will use our all strength to get back the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir.”
Gandhi further expressed confidence in the formation of the INDIA alliance government after elections and assured that the alliance government will restore the statehood of the territory.
“We will use parliament, Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and protest but we will get back the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir. If BJP didn’t accept, the first thing INDIA alliance government, which is going to be formed, is to restore the statehood of the territory, because this is your right, your future, without statehood, you can’t dream about Jammu and Kashmir,” said Rahul Gandhi.
The voter turnout in the second phase of voting for Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections was recorded at 36.93 per cent as of 1 pm on Wednesday, according to the Election Commission.
As per the Election Commission of India, Reasi has recorded the highest voter turnout of 51.55 percent among all six districts while Srinagar has still recorded the lowest turnout of 17.95 percent, as of 1 pm.
According to ECI, the voter turnout for Poonch is 49.94 percent, followed by Rajouri with 46.93 percent, Budgam with 39.43 percent and Ganderbal with 39.29 percent.
Meanwhile, earlier in the day, in a pointed remark aimed at its alliance partner Congress party, which is contesting elections in Jammu and Kashmir alongside the National Conference, Omar Abdullah urged Rahul Gandhi to wrap up campaigning in Kashmir and shift his focus towards Jammu.
He emphasized that the party should prioritize Jammu, where it holds the majority of seats, instead of solely campaigning in Kashmir.
“I hope after Rahul is done campaigning in one or two seats in Kashmir, he focuses in Jammu. Ultimately what the Congress does in Kashmir is not important. What the Congress does in Jammu is important. Unfortunately, Congress hasn’t done as much in the plains of Jammu as we would expect them to do. The lion’s share of the seats that the alliance gave in Jammu was to the Congress party. Yet, the Congress’ campaign in Jammu is yet to begin and there are only five days of campaigning. I hope once Rahul is done campaigning in this one seat in the valley, the Congress focuses all its attention in the plains of Jammu.”,” Abdullah said.
The Congress party, in alliance with the National Conference, is competing for 32 seats, while the NC is vying for 51 of the 90 Assembly seats.
Voting for the second phase of Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir began at 7 am on Wednesday. Over 25 lakh eligible voters will seal the fate of 239 candidates across 26 constituencies in six districts of the Union Territory. In this phase, 25,78,099 lakh voters are eligible to cast their ballot, comprising 13,12,730 lakh male voters, 12,65,316 lakh female voters and 53 third-gender voters.
The last phase of polls will be held on October 1 and counting of votes will be held on October 8.
