New Delhi: The Congress on Thursday attacked the BJP as Prime Minister Narendra Modi headed to Jammu and Kashmir, accusing the NDA government of trying to encroach on the powers of the political executive in the union territory.
As the prime minister headed to Srinagar and Katra to hold rallies, Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh posed three questions to him.
Why is the Union Government "trying to infringe" the powers of the J-K political executive, he asked.
In July 2024, the Ministry of Home Affairs amended the rules of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019, giving powers to take decisions on crucial matters such as police and officers of the All India Services, and granting sanctions for processing in several cases only to the Union Government. appointed lieutenant governor (LG), Ramesh said.
"By restricting the police and administrative powers of the political executive of J&K, the Ministry of Home Affairs has seriously compromised the functioning of the future Government of J&K," he said.
If the central government is sincere in granting full statehood to the people of J&K, then why does it continue to compromise the powers of the future state government, he asked.
Ramesh further asked if the Union Government's actions are popular, why the BJP and its representatives continue to be rejected by the people of J-K?
"When the BJP repealed Article 370 with great fanfare in 2019, they repeatedly argued that the actions were popular among the people of Jammu and Kashmir. However, the non-biological prime minister refused to visit J&K after 2019, until the elections of Lok Sabha in 2024." he said.
The BJP refused to participate in the Lok Sabha elections in the Kashmir Valley and instead implicitly supported the candidates fielded by its representatives, he claimed.
"However, all three representatives fared poorly, scoring a zero in the Lok Sabha and securing a lead in only one segment of the Vidhan Sabha. If the Union Government's actions are popular, why does the BJP and its representatives Are they still rejected by the people of J&K? Ramesh said.
Why can't the Union Government attract investments in J-K, not even in lithium mining, he asked.
"The non-biological prime minister's government generated considerable excitement, and rightly so, over the discovery of nearly six million tonnes of lithium in the Salal-Haimana area of Reasi district in Jammu and Kashmir. However, a year later , had to scrap two rounds of mining rights auctions in the area, after failing to generate enough interest from investors," he stated.
Lithium is one of the most sought-after minerals of the 21st century and plays a key role in the energy transition, Ramesh noted.
Globally, there has been a rush by investors to secure reliable access to lithium mining rights, the Congress leader added.
"It is not financial disinterest that prevents investors from taking an interest in the lithium reserves in Reasi, but rather the poor security situation in the region," he said.
Twelve soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir were martyred in terror attacks in July 2024 alone, and Reasi itself saw a cowardly attack on a civilian bus on June 9, 2024, Ramesh noted.
"The repeated message from the non-biological prime minister and his ministers since August 5, 2019 has been that their actions would stabilize the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir and give a boost to investment in the region. Why then would your government haven't you been able to do it?" he said he.
Elections in Jammu and Kashmir are being held in three phases. Voting for 24 seats in the first phase was held on Wednesday. Elections for 26 seats would then be held in the second phase on September 25.
Voting for the 40 seats in the third phase will be held on October 1, while the counting of votes will take place on October 8.
As the prime minister headed to Srinagar and Katra to hold rallies, Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh posed three questions to him.
Why is the Union Government "trying to infringe" the powers of the J-K political executive, he asked.
In July 2024, the Ministry of Home Affairs amended the rules of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019, giving powers to take decisions on crucial matters such as police and officers of the All India Services, and granting sanctions for processing in several cases only to the Union Government. appointed lieutenant governor (LG), Ramesh said.
"By restricting the police and administrative powers of the political executive of J&K, the Ministry of Home Affairs has seriously compromised the functioning of the future Government of J&K," he said.
If the central government is sincere in granting full statehood to the people of J&K, then why does it continue to compromise the powers of the future state government, he asked.
Ramesh further asked if the Union Government's actions are popular, why the BJP and its representatives continue to be rejected by the people of J-K?
"When the BJP repealed Article 370 with great fanfare in 2019, they repeatedly argued that the actions were popular among the people of Jammu and Kashmir. However, the non-biological prime minister refused to visit J&K after 2019, until the elections of Lok Sabha in 2024." he said.
The BJP refused to participate in the Lok Sabha elections in the Kashmir Valley and instead implicitly supported the candidates fielded by its representatives, he claimed.
"However, all three representatives fared poorly, scoring a zero in the Lok Sabha and securing a lead in only one segment of the Vidhan Sabha. If the Union Government's actions are popular, why does the BJP and its representatives Are they still rejected by the people of J&K? Ramesh said.
Why can't the Union Government attract investments in J-K, not even in lithium mining, he asked.
"The non-biological prime minister's government generated considerable excitement, and rightly so, over the discovery of nearly six million tonnes of lithium in the Salal-Haimana area of Reasi district in Jammu and Kashmir. However, a year later , had to scrap two rounds of mining rights auctions in the area, after failing to generate enough interest from investors," he stated.
Lithium is one of the most sought-after minerals of the 21st century and plays a key role in the energy transition, Ramesh noted.
Globally, there has been a rush by investors to secure reliable access to lithium mining rights, the Congress leader added.
"It is not financial disinterest that prevents investors from taking an interest in the lithium reserves in Reasi, but rather the poor security situation in the region," he said.
Twelve soldiers in Jammu and Kashmir were martyred in terror attacks in July 2024 alone, and Reasi itself saw a cowardly attack on a civilian bus on June 9, 2024, Ramesh noted.
"The repeated message from the non-biological prime minister and his ministers since August 5, 2019 has been that their actions would stabilize the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir and give a boost to investment in the region. Why then would your government haven't you been able to do it?" he said he.
Elections in Jammu and Kashmir are being held in three phases. Voting for 24 seats in the first phase was held on Wednesday. Elections for 26 seats would then be held in the second phase on September 25.
Voting for the 40 seats in the third phase will be held on October 1, while the counting of votes will take place on October 8.
