Union Home Minister Amit Shah took a strong stance against the opposition in a rally in Nowshera, ahead of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections. He accused the Congress, National Conference (NC), and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) of depriving people in hilly areas of reservations, a situation he said was rectified by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.
Shah firmly dismissed calls from opposition leaders, including NC’s Farooq Abdullah, to reinstate Article 370, saying, “Farooq Sahab, nobody can bring back Article 370.” He added, “Now, bunkers are not needed because no one can dare to fire bullets. If a bullet comes from there, it will be answered with shells. They want to bring back Sheikh Abdullah’s flag, but only our tricolour will wave in Jammu and Kashmir.”
The Home Minister criticised Abdullah for being absent during periods of unrest in the region, accusing him of being “comfortably holidaying in London” while Kashmir faced terrorism, curfews, and violence for three decades.
Shah also rejected opposition demands for dialogue with Pakistan, stating unequivocally, “We will not hold conversations or dialogue with Pakistan till terrorism is eliminated. He further accused the opposition of wanting to free jailed terrorists, while under Modi’s leadership, the government had “wiped out terrorists one by one.”
Shah reassured voters from the Gujjar and Bakarwal communities that their reservation rights would be protected, claiming that the opposition had denied these rights for 70 years, while the Modi government corrected these injustices.
The first phase of the Jammu and Kashmir elections saw a 61.13% voter turnout. The second and third phases are scheduled for 25 September and 5 October, with vote counting on 8 October, alongside Haryana’s election results.