On the fifth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370, the Congress party has demanded that elections in Jammu and Kashmir be held according to the Supreme Court-set deadline.
Party chief Mallikarjun Kharge criticised the BJP’s policies on Jammu and Kashmir, stating there was no respect for either 'Kashmiriyat' or 'Jamhuriyat' (democracy).
“BJP’s policy on Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh neither respects 'Kashmiriyat' nor upholds 'Jamhuriyat',” Kharge said in a post on X.
He added, “The Modi government had claimed that this move would help integrate Jammu and Kashmir, boost economic development, and prevent terrorism and separatism. However, the reality is starkly different.”
Since the abrogation in 2019, there have been 683 fatal terror attacks, leading to the deaths of 258 security personnel and 170 civilians, according to Kharge.
He also noted that 25 terror attacks have occurred in the Jammu region since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's third term began, resulting in the deaths of 15 soldiers and injuries to 27 others.
Kharge highlighted other challenges, such as targeted killings of Kashmiri Pandits and high unemployment rates.
“A staggering 65 per cent of government department posts in Jammu and Kashmir have remained vacant since 2019,” he said. The unemployment rate stands at 10%, with youth unemployment at an alarming 18.3 per cent.”
Despite the introduction of the New Industrial Policy in 2021, only 3 per cent of investments have materialised, Kharge claimed.
Additionally, he pointed out that 40 per cent of projects under the PM’s Development Package, 2015, remain pending, and the net state domestic product (NSDP) growth rate has declined from 13.28 per cent (April 2015–March 2019) to 8.73 per cent post-2019.
“The people of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh yearn for normalcy, a sentiment they conveyed to Rahul Gandhi during the Bharat Jodo Yatra,” Kharge said.
“We demand that elections are held according to the Supreme Court-set deadline so that people can elect their representatives, secure constitutional rights, and end the rule of bureaucracy.”
He added that the Indian National Congress stands firmly with the people of these regions, which are an integral part of India.
Whenever assembly elections are held in Jammu and Kashmir, they will be the first since the abrogation of Article 370 and the bifurcation of the state into two Union Territories in 2019.
Last December, the Supreme Court directed the poll panel to hold assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir by September 30.
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