The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday welcomed the decision by banned outfit Jamaat-e-Islami J&K to become part of mainstream politics here on Thursday.
Addressing a media gathering in Srinagar, senior BJP leader and former minister Sunil Sharma welcomed the decision of the leaders of the banned socio-political-religious organisation to participate in the Assembly elections held in J&K later this year if the ban imposed on it in 2019 is lifted.
In another address to the media recently, Ghulam Qadir Wani, senior leader of Jamaat-e-Islami from Pulwama, had said the organisation would contest all elections, including the Assembly polls on the condition that the Centre revoke the ban on the outfit.
Once considered a major separatist organisation, the Jamaat's leaders, members and activists have in recent years faced the Centre’s crackdown, with properties linked to it in Srinagar and South Kashmir being seized.
After the initial five-year ban, the Centre, through its notification issued in February 2024 extended it for another five years.
Sharma, at the gathering, said, "Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government, there is no left-right stream allowed, except for expressing trust in the mainstream. Any individual or organisation may come and carry out activities.
“However, individuals who engage in anti-national acts that endanger the nation's peace and integrity will not go unpunished.
"The BJP applauds the decision made by Jamaat-e-Islami J&K yesterday. It is a good step," Sharma said.
Responding to questions, Sharma stated that voter participation on May 13 in the Srinagar Parliamentary Segment represented a "big success" of the
Government of India's plans and policies for Jammu and Kashmir after August 2019, as well as the consequence of Article 370 abrogation.
On Home Minister Amit Shah’s Thursday visit, he said though it was strictly apolitical, the party's leadership and activists were expected to meet Shah in Srinagar."
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