Will break backbone of terror in J&K: Modi in Srinagar

Asserting that India will break the backbone of terror in Jammu and Kashmir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the country has shown to the world its new policies (on terrorism) with the surgical strike conducted across the Line of Control.

"I assure all the youth of Jammu and Kashmir and the country that the government will give ‘muhtod jawab’ (befitting response) to every terrorist. We will break the backbone of terror in the state,” he said while winding up his one-day whirlwind tour the state.

He also interacted with college students from across the country in Srinagar. “There are two realities today which make us proud. India is the fastest growing large economy in the world and, according to studies, India is also reducing poverty at the fastest pace in the world,” Modi said.

The Prime Minister also paid tribute to Nazir Ahmad Wani, the J&K soldier who was awarded the Ashoka Chakra posthumously. Wani is the first Kashmiri to receive the gallantry award.

Earlier, Modi addressed public meetings in Leh and Jammu regions of the state, where he inaugurated and laid foundation stones for various developmental schemes and projects. He launched the University of Ladakh, the first-ever varsity, an AIIMS and an IIMC in Jammu among a host of other development projects.

Addressing a rally in Vijaypur in Jammu, he said, the BJP-led government at the Centre was dedicated to the issues of migrant Kashmiri Pandits. “The Central government is committed to protecting the honour and dignity of our Kashmiri Pandit brothers. They have suffered due to terrorism. This pain has always been in my heart. The promised 3,000 jobs for the Kashmiri Pandits have been rolled out,” Modi said.

On the issue of border residents, who are facing the brunt due to frequent ceasefire violations by Pakistan, he said the government was building 14,000 bunkers for the safety of people living along the border.

The Prime Minister hit out at the Congress, alleging that the opposition party was using farm loan waivers as a tool to win elections. He also claimed that those who had mocked him for opening ‘Jan Dhan’ accounts have realised that his government will use it for direct benefit transfers.

While making a strong pitch for the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, Modi said his government would stand with the children of "Maa Bharti" who have faced persecution in Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh.

“We have brought the matter of change in Citizenship Bill with a commitment. Those (people) who had to part with India due to some condition in 1947, if they face persecution on the basis of their faith then the country has to stand with them,” he said.

Referring to the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Modi said the ‘Jung’ (war) of 2019 is for taking country ahead.

Earlier, amid four-tier security arrangements, the Prime Minister arrived in the state amid shutdown call by the separatists, for the first time since the fall of PDP-BJP government in June last year. The call for the shutdown was issued by separatist leader Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Yasin Malik as a mark of protest against “tyranny and oppression” during five years of Modi rule.