Jammu: Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the complete integration of J&K with the rest of the country through abrogation of Article 370 was the result of the supreme sacrifice given by Syama Prasad Mukherjee.
He was speaking at a public gathering at Bhagwati Nagar in Jammu.
He claimed the complete integration of Jammu and Kashmir was the result of the supreme sacrifice given by Syama Prasad Mukherjee whose martyrdom anniversary is being held on this day. He also said he is in the city of temples so he must first of all bow his head to Mata Vaishno Devi.
"When Article 370 was introduced, it was Syama Prasad Mukherjee who said that in one country we cannot have two constitutions, two Prime Ministers, and two flags. He started a Satyagraha against Article 370 and was arrested for entering the state on the pretext that he did not carry a permit to enter the state. Nobody had till then questioned the anomaly as to why would a citizen of the country not be allowed to enter a part of his own country without a permit," he said.
"All of us know that he was arrested and then murdered in captivity. His soul would be happy and peaceful today because Modiji removed Article 370. So would the soul of Pandit Premnath Dogra who fought alongside Syama Prasad Mukherjee. Modiji's government has completed nine years in power and during this period, the country has witnessed phenomenal development and there hasn't been a single incident of corruption. Modiji has brought such progress and civic facilities in the lives of 60 crore poor people for which the poor had been waiting for 70 long years," he added.
"Today I have inaugurated three developmental projects worth Rs 84 crore and also laid the foundation of new projects worth Rs 309 crore which includes CSLF worth Rs 9 crore. 97 lakh people in J&K today have a gold health card for cashless treatment and this is because of Modiji. While only the poor outside J&K can avail Rs 5 lakh assistance under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana outside J&K, it is applicable to every citizen of J&K," he further said.
"During the governments run by Farooq Abdullah and Mehbooba Mufti, 42,000 people got killed. People should ask them to answer why those people were killed. After the abrogation of Article 370, Modiji has put terrorism under a tight leash," claimed the Home Minister.
Many Gujjar and Pahari tribals were present at the gathering.
Shah asked them whether they would ever get a reservation if Article 370 had not been removed. "Our Dalit and Adivasi brothers and sisters would also not get any benefit when Article 370 was there. Modiji's government also started an industrial package of Rs 28,400 crore for employment generation in J&K. Youth used to carry stones in their hands and today I am very happy to see laptops in their hands."
He then appealed to the public to vote in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections to fulfill the BJP target of over 300 seats.