Jammu, September 23: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and former All India Congress Committee (AICC) president Rahul Gandhi on Monday said the Congress party will pressure the BJP government at the Center after the assembly elections Restore statehood to J&K.
“First, we will put pressure on them after the assembly elections to immediately restore the statehood of J&K and remove the injustice done to its (J&K) people. If they don’t do that, we will definitely do it for you ,” he reiterated.
Opposition leaders accuse the BJP-led central government of ruling J&K in (New) Delhi and making decisions by non-locals.
He was addressing an election rally in Surankot in support of Congress candidate Chaudhry Shahnawaz.
Rahul was accompanied on the dais by National Conference (NC) president Dr Farooq Abdullah and senior Congress leaders including former federal minister Balasim Solanki.
“What is yours has been taken away from you. Earlier, your elected governments used to take decisions keeping in mind your (people’s) interests and your bright future. Currently these decisions are taken by outsiders out. You have no say in running the affairs of your own government. Direct orders from (New) Delhi are being implemented here. That is why we want statehood in the first place,” Rahul said. .
“The fate of J&K is now decided by outsiders,” he said, citing the loss of autonomy in governance. He also claimed that the downgrading of the state to a Union Territory was mainly aimed at benefiting a few powerful industrialists, claiming that the government was prioritizing the interests of a few over the common people.
Rahul also criticized the BJP for downgrading Jammu and Kashmir from a full-fledged state to a Union Territory, saying it was an unprecedented move in the history of modern India. He emphasized that Jammu and Kashmir was the first state in Indian history to be divided into two Union Territories – Ladakh and J&K.
He pointed out that unlike other regions where new states were created from the largest state, J&K was downgraded and its people were stripped of their democratic rights.
“This is the first time that a state has been downgraded to a Union Territory. Your autonomy has been taken away,” he declared, stressing that “restoration of statehood remains the top priority of the Congress party.”
BJP-RSS spreads hatred, violence
“Farooq Sahab talks about (fighting) hatred. You know, these people from the BJP and RSS from J&K and other states in the country will only spread hatred and violence 24X7. Wherever they go, they will brotherly To create division between, be it J&K, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Manipur or any other part of the country, they are spreading hatred. This is their only mission. They have nothing but hatred. Know. Their politics only revolve around it,” Rahul claimed.
“You know, hatred cannot be removed through hatred. It can be removed only through love. So it is a battle of two ideologies. On one hand, there are people who spread hatred and on the other hand, there are people who want to open a love bazaar (Mohabbat Ki Dukan). We crossed from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and then from Manipur to Maharashtra with a message that hatred is not in anyone’s interest,” Rahul said, They (Congress) have opened love bazaars in the hate bazaars of every state. “
PM Modi loses aura; confidence shattered
Taking a dig at the person he hates the most – former AICC chief Prime Minister Narendra Modi reiterated, “Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who once boasted about his 56-inch bust, has lost his aura. You will be watching from afar. But when I stood in front of him in parliament, I could see him very clearly that he was a shadow of his former self.
“In this case, whatever the opposition wants, it will come true. They (the government) bring the law and we (the opposition) stand in front of them (against the law). They cannot get it passed and then they are forced to bring it A new law. The confidence they had flaunted earlier has been shattered. This is clearly reflected in his face and his character,” he said.
Rahul said, “During the (Lok Sabha) elections, he (the Prime Minister) collapsed under the pressure to the point where he claimed that he was an inanimate entity and that he had a direct link (with God). This quote reflects The psychological pressure he was under. Obviously, the Indian alliance psychologically destroyed Narendra Modi forever, but we did not do it through hatred. We eliminated (their) hatred with love.”
Rahul reiterated his commitment to the people of J&K and promised to speak for them in Parliament.
“Whenever you need me, just call and I’ll be there. I’ll make sure your concerns are heard by council,” he told the meeting, highlighting his longstanding ties to the region.
He further criticized the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh for sowing division along religious, linguistic, caste and even regional lines. “They resorted to the same political tactics in Johnson & Johnson. But we will fail their agenda and will continue to advance all parts,” he said.
Talking about the economic challenges faced by the country, Rahul lambasted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s policies, especially demonetisation and the introduction of the flawed Goods and Services Tax, which he said had crippled small and medium enterprises ability.
He accused the Modi government of waiving loans worth Rs 1.6 million for a handful of around 25 businessmen like Ambani-Adani while ignoring the needs of farmers, workers and students. This directly leads to unemployment among young people.
He pointed out that despite having high academic qualifications, young people in J&K are finding it difficult to find jobs, a situation he directly attributed to the Modi government’s economic mismanagement.
Abdullah, who began his speech by describing Rahul as “the future prime minister of India”, said the fight was against the hatred spread by the BJP and the RSS.
“Earlier, they (BJP-RSS) tried to create hatred between Hindus and Muslims; Hindus and Sikhs and then Hindus and Christians to gain power. However, their efforts failed. Their charts are going down,” Abdullah claimed.
He urged National Conference rebel Chaudhry Akram, who is contesting as an independent candidate against the Congress candidate, to withdraw from the race to strengthen the Congress’ alliance with NC.
“His (Akram’s) presence in the electoral battle is strengthening the forces that want to eliminate us (Muslims). The Prime Minister himself has described Muslims as “infiltrators”. He (PM Modi) blames Muslims for the country’s population growth Out of control. He claimed that other people’s wealth would be distributed among Muslims and even the “Mangalsutra” (the sacred thread worn by married Hindu women) would be taken away from them (Congress and its Indian alliance partners) in order to give it to Muslims. They (BJP-RSS) belong to that category of people who only spread hatred,” Farooq said.
In the same context, he also explained the rationale behind the NC-Congress alliance.
“You know why North Carolina and Congress are in alliance. We have one goal and that is to drive out these forces of hate; to remove the BJP-RSS from power, not just from J&K but across the country. We think we have to do The NC has sacrificed a lot for this, so we decided to work together to achieve this common goal.
“To weaken us (the alliance), they are spreading rumors that Mian Altaf is not with us and that is why he is not with me. This is a white lie. He (Mian Altaf) Altaf) is with us. He will also accompany me. But he is busy campaigning for his son, who is also involved in the election. Today is the last day of the campaign (the second phase of the parliamentary elections). This time he (Mian Altaf) has to stand by his son and campaign for him,” the NC president tried to clear up the misunderstanding.
“That is why I appeal to Chaudhry Akram not to spread hatred and weaken the alliance,” Farooq advised the rebel candidate.
He said the time was ripe to transcend sectarian thinking and unite to defeat the forces of hatred.
“Forget the fight between Hindus and Muslims, Gujjar Paharis or Shias and Sunnis, unite. This is not the time to talk about Dharm (religion); It is time to talk and focus only on karma (work or action) to eliminate the forces that want to destroy India and its integrity. Vote for ‘Hand’ to strengthen the power of spreading love,” he said.
Abdullah said, “Rahul Gandhi said he wanted to open a love market (Mohabbat Ki Dukan) in the market of hate. I would like to add to his words. We in J&K want to destroy and sink the vehicle or carrier of hate, and traveling across the country in vehicles spreading and spreading the love.”
AICC Jammu and Kashmir chief Bharat Sinh Solanki, AICC joint chief Manoj Yadav, Congress candidate for Surankote assembly segment Shahnawaz Hussain, JKPCC senior vice president and chief spokesperson Ravinder Sharma, Thanamandi assembly segment Congress candidate Shabir Khan, Rajouri seat Congress candidate Iftikhar Ahmed also spoke at the meeting.
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