Article 370 will never be restored, asserts Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday asserted that Article 370 of the Constitution which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir will never be restoredShahs comments came as Jammu and Kashmirs two principal regional parties the National Conference and the PDP promised in their election manifestoes for upcoming assembly polls in Jammu and Kashmir that they would work to restore the controversial provision scrapped on August 5 2019Article 370 has no place in Jammu and Kashmir now or ever It will never be restored Shah said at a press conference in the Chhattisgarh capital when asked about itThe home minister was addressing a press conference here after attending a meeting of top civil and security officials of the Naxalhit statesRestoration of Article 370 and Jammu and Kashmirs statehood as well as implementation of the autonomy resolution passed by the erstwhile assembly in 2000 are among the National Conferences 12 guarantees announced in its manifesto for the upcoming pollsWe strive to restore Articles 37035A and statehood as prior to August 5 2019 the NC poll document saidIn June 2000 the National Conference government under Farooq Abdullah passed a resolution in the JK Assembly seeking to restore the pre1953 constitutional position in the stateIt was however rejected by the Union Cabinet headed by then Prime Minister Atal Bihari VajpayeeArticle 370 was abrogated by the Narendra Modi government on August 5 2019 and the erstwhile state was bifurcated into two UTs Jammu and Kashmir and LadakhThe PDP on Saturday released its manifesto for the Assembly elections promising to pursue the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir to its original status and advocate for confidencebuilding measures CBMs and regional cooperation between India and PakistanThe PDP is resolute in its pursuit of restoring the constitutional guarantees that were unjustly scrapped and is committed to restoring Jammu and Kashmir to its original status ensuring that the voices of its people are heard and their rights are safeguarded it saidThe PDP manifesto said the unconstitutional and illegal revocation of Articles 370 and 35A in 2019 has further complicated the Kashmir issue deepening the alienation felt by the people of the regionOn Friday Shah slammed the Congress for its alliance with the National Conference for the Jammu and Kashmir assembly polls accusing the party of repeatedly risking the countrys unity and security in its greed for powerThe Congress has once again exposed its ulterior motives by allying with the Abdullah familys National Conference Shah saidPosing 10 questions for the Congress and Gandhi Shah had asked Does the Congress support the National Conferences promise of a separate flag for Jammu and Kashmir Do Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party support the JKNCs decision to restore Article 370 and 35A and thereby pushing Jammu and Kashmir back into an era of unrest and terrorism The full name of Farooq Abdullahled party is Jammu and Kashmir National Conference JKNCThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever