A day after the Bharatiya Janata Party released Its manifesto for the upcoming J&K assembly elections, union home minister Amit Shah addressed a karyakarta sammelan (gathering of cadres) in Jammu.
Shah, who has been deeply involved in the meteoric rise of the saffron party across the country since around 2014 and was its national president has always focused on strengthening booths, which has made a big difference in elections.
Speaking to party workers on Saturday, he spelt out a strategy for the BJP to win the Jammu and Kashmir elections. “I want to give you a very interesting formula. Not only your own family but focus on the neighbouring three families too to ensure each person comes out to vote in the upcoming polls,” Shah stressed.
The “page committee” (each focusing on voters on one page of the electoral rolls) focus has delivered excellent results in the home minister’s home state Gujarat (where he himself has been the head of the page committee). And that can actually deliver the desired results in Kashmir too, he emphasised.
Shah once again urged party workers to strengthen the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has become the PM for the third time in a row and said that he has the best interests of the union territory in mind. He said that while development will happen in stages, including for infrastructure, the party would ensure that the dignity and the rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir are protected.
“It is only the BJP that has pledged to ensure peace and stability in Jammu and Kashmir. All of you need to have one target and that is to get BJP candidates to win all seats in Jammu. You all need to go home to home and get this target achieved,” Shah said to the party workers at the gathering.
Invoking the sentiments of party stalwart Syama Prasad Mukherjee, Shah said that he had laid down his life to see a united India, and as a tribute to him, it needs to be ensured that the BJP forms the government in J&K.
“Jahaan hue balidan Mukherjee wo Kashmir hamara hai (Where Mukherjee gave up his life, that Kashmir is ours),” this slogan shouted by the home minister received a thunderous response from the crowd.
Shah also hit out at the Congress and its alliance partner National Conference, saying that these families along with that of the Peoples Democratic Party led by Mehbooba Mufti, have never had the interests of the people in mind, except for their selfish politics.
Targeting Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in particular, Shah said that the attempt of the alliance was only to mislead people by promising statehood restoration.
“Who do you think will be able to give statehood to the people of Jammu and Kashmir?” Shah asked his party workers. He further stressed that this is a commitment that was given on the day of the abrogation of Article 370 being cleared by Parliament. “My speech on the 5th and 6th of August 2019 is already there for everybody to see. On the floor of the house, I had said that we would restore statehood at an appropriate time after the assembly elections. How are these parties able to make such a commitment even without having any power? They have made these promises, even though we have been committed to this from 2019 onwards,” he added.
Underscoring the “inaction on terrorism” by parties that have been in power in Kashmir, Shah hit out at the NC in particular, saying that when terrorist activity took place, the Abdullah family led by Farooq Abdullah “ran off to England”.
The home minister also stressed that after the removal of Article 370, there has been a drop of 70% in cases of terrorism, and stone-pelting incidents have been zero.
Jammu and Kashmir will have elections in three phases, on September 18, September 25, and October 5, with the votes to be counted on October 8, alongside Haryana.
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