Jammu (Jammu and Kashmir) [India], September 23 : Taking a dig at the opposition parties in Jammu and Kashmir, Union Minister Jitendra Singh on Sunday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already said in a public meeting in J&K's Doda that the status of statehood will be given to the J&K, but the leaders from the opposition parties will still keep demanding it so that they can showcase that they pressured the centre to pursue over the same. He further stated that such cleverness from the past will not work.
"Some leaders are still playing tricks from the last election. PM Modi said in a public meeting in Doda that J&K will be given statehood. He said the same thing six months ago in his public meeting at Bakshi Stadium. The Home Minister has said the same thing in the Parliament repeatedly," said the Union Minister.
"The opposition people know that statehood has been declared, the announcement has been made, and its order can be issued anytime, so they feel that if they keep demanding this again and again, then tomorrow when it happens, they will be able to say that it happened because of pressure created by them, but now times have changed, the cleverness of the past will not work..." he added.
Meanwhile, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday also reiterated that the opposition parties, including the PDP, NC and Congress, have no power to provide statehood status to J&K because they don't have the government in the centre. Further appealing the voters in J&K to vote and get the BJP government formed in J&K, Rajnath Singh said that PM Modi has already assured that the statehood will be provided to J&K.
"We have done whatever we promised in the BJP election manifesto. We spoke about the abrogation of Article 370, and we did it as soon as we got the majority in centre. I feel pained by what Omar Abudullah said and did. He said that he won't fight in elections till the J&K restores statehood, but now he is fighting from two constituencies. Parties like the PDP, NC, and Congress claim that they will give statehood to J&K. How will they? They do not have government in the centre. Without that, it is not possible. Politics should not be done to win in elections. It must be done to build a country," Rajnath Singh said, slamming J&K opposition parties in a public rally in Jammu.
"It is not just me speaking that, PM Modi has himself assured on J&K's statehood restoration. 61 per cent of voting has been recorded in J&K, in the first phase of assembly elections, and it happened because of the abrogation of Article 370," said the Defence Minister.