The Central government has begun taking confidence-building measures in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir by initiating dialogues with Sarpanches, block development councils, civil society members and apple grower societies, says Union Minister of State for Home Affairs G. Kishan Reddy.
“We will not stop at that and will soon hold elections to local bodies which have not been conducted for the last 30 years. The Centre will restore normalcy, including Internet connectivity (2G), soon. Those who criticise us have not opened their mouths for 70 years, when fundamental rights of its citizens have been trampled upon. The State’s popular leader Sheikh Abdullah himself languished in prison for 11 years under Congress rule,’’ Mr. Kishan Reddy told this correspondent in an exclusive interview here on Monday.
The Minister said abrogation of Article 370 is timely as it put to an end its misuse by forces inimical to the country. “The BJP has always placed abrogation of Article 370 on top of its election manifesto. Our leader Shyama Prasad Mukherjee resigned from the Jawaharlal Nehru Cabinet protesting against the introduction of the Article. Due to special provisions under Article 370, the State lost heavily on several fronts, including food security and reservation for women, BCs, SCs and STs, ’’ the Minister said.
In addition to the special package announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, ₹3,300 crore has been given to gram panchayats in the J& K and Ladakh UTs to undertake developmental works. The government asked Markfed to procure apples directly from farmers and allocated ₹30,000 crore for the purpose, he added.