Article 370: Modi, Shah earn place in history: Jaitley

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has created history with his clarity and determination on the Kashmir issue, senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley said on Tuesday, asserting that the vision of party's ideologue Syama Prasad Mookerjee has proved correct and that of Jawaharlal Nehru a "failure".

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In a blog following the government's move to revoke provisions of Article 370 giving Jammu and Kashmir a special status, he took a dig at the Congress over its opposition to the exercise. He termed it a "headless chicken" and said its leadership is determined to succeed in its race to the bottom.

Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have earned a place in history, the former Union minister said, adding that a separate status for the state led to separatism and that no dynamic nation can allow this situation to continue.

Jaitley said "popular support" to the government's move has compelled several opposition parties to support it as they have sensed the ground reality and do not want to face the wrath of the people.

"Today, when history is being re-written, it has given a verdict that Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee's vision on Kashmir was the correct one and Panditji's dream solution has proved to be a failure... The prime minister has created history through his absolute clarity and determination," he said.

Modi and Shah achieved the impossible, he said, noting that historic legislations were passed in the ongoing Parliament's session, including the triple talaq bill, strengthening of India's anti-terror laws and the decision on Article 370, all of which are "unprecedented".

"The popular belief that the promise BJP made on Article 370 is an unachievable slogan has been proved wrong," Jaitley said.

Regrettably, he said, the Congress, which first "created the problem and then added to it", fails to see reason.

He claimed that an overwhelming majority of Congress leaders support the government's move, saying that their private and public comments are in this direction.

"But the national party as a headless chicken is further consolidating its alienation from the people of India," he said.

Just as Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's support to the "tukde-tudke gang" at the JNU was at variance with the sentiments of even the Congress workers, the same applies to its leadership's stand now, he said.

Jaitley, who opted out of joining the government due to health issues and is now recuperating at home, also gave a brief history of the state's accession to India, Article 370 and its political history since then.

He said the "historic blunders" of special status under Article 370 and Article 35A had cost the country both politically and financially and that different attempts to resolve the issue of separatism and terrorism proved a disaster.

It prompted Modi to follow an alternative approach as a few hundred separatist leaders and armed terrorists were holding the state and country to ransom, he said.

Complementing Modi and Shah for correcting a historic blunder, he said their move has shown that "Modi hai to mumkin hai" (It is possible if Modi is there), a slogan coined by BJP supporters.