JOIN US'Let Amit Shah walk from Jammu to Lal Chowk if all is well', dares Rahul Gandhi
Top Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday sought to turn the tables on the BJP government over its claim that normalcy has returned to Jammu and Kashmir after abrogation of Article 370, asking why can't Union Home Minister Amit Shah do a yatra from Jammu to Kashmir if peace has returned to the valley.
At the same time, he also refused a direct answer to repeated questions on whether Congress stands for restoration of Article 370 or special status to Jammu and Kashmir to repeated questions on the issue, saying the Congress Working Committee (CWC) resolution of 2019 is "clear".
He also side-stepped a query on whether the Congress would be part of an Opposition alliance in Jammu and Kashmir while emphasising that restoration of statehood and democratic process is a very important step in the union territory.
Asked whether he agreed with the BJP argument on normalcy in the valley, he said targeted killings and bomb blasts are still taking place in Kashmir. "If security had improved, then the security people would not have had the conversations that they had with me. If what they claim is the case, then why doesn't the BJP hold a rally from Jammu to Lal Chowk? If the situation is so good, then why doesn't Home Minister Amit Shah walk from Jammu to Kashmir?"
On questions of whether Congress would call for restoration of Article 370, he repeatedly referred to the CWC resolution and said he had made his stand clear on several occasions.
Congress had deplored the "unilateral, brazen and totally undemocratic manner" in which Article 370 was abrogated and the state was "dismembered by misinterpreting " the provisions of the Constitution.
It had also said Article 370 is the Constitutional recognition of the terms of the Instrument of Accession between Jammu and Kashmir and India and it deserved to be honoured until it was amended, after consultation with all sections of people and strictly in accordance with the Constitution of India. Article 370 was part of the Instrument of Accession, and all decisions have to be made only by complying with all originally promised Constitutional means.
Noting that he was not happy with what he saw in Jammu and Kashmir, "when I entered Jammu and Kashmir, I met people from Jammu, Ladakh and Kashmir areas of the region. No one that I met -- and I met farmers, students, youth, businessmen -- seemed to be happy or excited about what is happening here.''
"Statehood and restoration of democratic process is a fundamental and very important first step. The other steps will come later and I do not necessarily have to comment on it here," he said to a question on whether he would favour resuming talks with Pakistan.
Emphasising that the yatra has "not ended" as it has initiated the process for providing an alternative vision to the country, he said the walkathon has ceased to be a Congress yatra and transformed into a 'Bharat Yatra' where common man was overwhelmingly participating compared to Congress workers. On one side is the vision to crush others while ours is the vision of embracing and taking people together, he added.
"The BJP and RSS are attacking the institutional framework of this country. Whether it is Parliament, assemblies, judiciaries, media. All institutions are being attacked and captured by the BJP. What you have seen in different parts of the country and Jammu and Kashmir are the result of that assault on the institutional framework," he said.