Vikram Sharma

Article 370 is a ‘wall of hatred’ and 35A historical blunder, which the saffron party wishes should go away from the state of Jammu and Kashmir, said Bharatiya Janata Party state president Ravinder Raina on Sunday.

Raina said since Article 370 is temporary and transitional provision and has to go with the passage of time, Article 35A was neither part of original Constitution framed by the Constituent Assembly, nor did it come as a Constitutional Amendment and is a historical blunder committed, which came as a presidential notification and is a covert insertion 

in the Constitution.

The state president spoke on historical perspectives of both issues, but did not clear the saffron party’s stand for taking any concrete step to abrogate both, as is the 

aspiration of the people of the Jammu region.

“Article 370 is a wall of hatred and 35A historical blunder. We wish both provisions should go, which have brought only harm to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. We reiterate our position, since the time of the Jan Sangh, to abrogate Article 370,” said Raina, adding that the BJP in its election manifesto ‘Sankalp Patr’ had proposed to eliminate Article 370 and Article 35A of the Constitution.

Raina, who also wished for early state Assembly elections in state, said a whopping majority received by the party in the LS poll is an indicator of BJP’s majority government coming in J&K, which will have a CM from the saffron party only.

He also blamed erstwhile National Conference and Congress party for having introduced M-Form system for displaced Kashmiri pundit votes, which he termed as a great impediment to BJP’s success.

“We will request the Election Commission to take cognizance of the tedious M-Form system, which deprives the total rights of Kashmiri pundits in voting in J&K. We are capable of getting 50 Assembly constituencies once this provision is removed,” said Raina.

When reminded about the recent claim of the party to secure the rights of the PoJK refugees, he refrained from giving any concrete answer.

Courtesy:The Tribune,May27,2019