Nadda meets retired Army officers, discusses Kashmir

BJP working president J P Nadda on Tuesday blamed Jammu and Kashmir’s recently abrogated special status for separatism in the Valley as he met retired Army officers who have served there.

Nadda was here on “sampark abhiyan” - a party outreach programme - during which he sought the views of retired Army officers on the region, now bifurcated into the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader visited the home of Lt. General (retd) Vishambhar Singh, where he met some other retired officers as well.

"The issue was continuing for years. Separatism flourished in Jammu and Kashmir due to the Article 370 status,” he told reporters later, referring to the recent abrogation of J&K’s special status.

He said separatist powers had been on the rise in the Valley even though the state was a part of the Union.

After the abrogation of the special status under Article 370, Jammu and Kashmir has joined the mainstream, he said.

“We have got some good suggestions from our decorated soldiers that we will embrace and work for the development of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.

“These officers have spent a long time to secure Jammu and Kashmir and they have given suggestions that the Centre can take so that the people in the Valley also join the mainstream," Nadda said.

He did not elaborate on the suggestions.

Nadda was accompanied by Leader of Opposition in Rajasthan Assembly Gulab Chand Kataria, BJP state unit’s organisational general secretary Chandra Shekhar and former state unit presidents Arun Chaturvedi and Ashok Parnami.