State BJP Spokesperson, Prof. Virender Gupta, while reacting to the Farooq Abdullah’s Statement that “Autonomy remains only constitutional remedy to Kashmir Issue”, said that Kashmir does not constitute whole of Jammu and Kashmir State, but it is merely about sixteen percent of the area of Jammu and Kashmir, which is presently in India. He reminded Farooq Abdullah that all the kings of the princely states signed the same Instrument of Accession, surrendering three subjects and it was Maharaja Hari Singh, who signed the the Instrument of Accession, thereby acceded the State to Indian Union and not Sheikh Abdullah as claimed by Farooq. He further said that Article 370 was incorporated in the Indian Constitution as a temporary provision because of special conditions prevailing at that time: J&K was attacked by Pakistan, it had captured a major portion of the State and the issue of the state was in the U.N.O. Neither Maharaja nor Sheikh Abdullah or any other person laid any condition for the accession, otherwise also no condition was permitted to be annexed or added with the Instrument of Accession, as per the Indian Independence Act 1947.
The Spokesperson said that the elections held in 1952 for the constitution of State Constituent Assembly were rigged at large scale, when all the 75 seats were won by National Conference candidates out of which 72 of its nominees came unopposed. He stated that the people of Ladakh region, under the leadership of Kushak Bakula, opposed Article 370 and Accord of 1952, while people of Jammu region launched a massive agitation under the banner of Praja Parishad led by Pt. Prem Nath Dogra with the slogans of “Ek Vidhaan, Ek Nishaan, Ek Pradhaan” that is One Constitution, one Flag and one President.
Prof. Virender said that Article 370, 1952 Agreement and separate constitution of Jammu and Kashmir have done great harm to the people of the State and to the integrity of the country. The boggy of Autonomy under Article 370 raised by separatists and the so called the leaders of the mainstream parties did not allow the people of Jammu and Kashmir, in particular that of Valley, to become the part of the national mainstream. It developed a psyche among the Kashmiri masses of treating themselves as separate from rest of India and encouraged the separatist tendencies to flourish, thus giving an opportunity to Pakistan to import terrorism in the Valley, that has kept Kashmir always boiling. It has adversely affected the economy of not only Kashmir but that of Jammu and Ladakh regions too.
Prof. Virender Gupta further added that permanent solution of Jammu and Kashmir, that can bring peace and prosperity, lies in the abrogation of Article 370 and not in granting the so-called Greater Autonomy. He further proposed that the best solution lies in the empowerment of all the regions of the state with granting each region the administrative, economic and legislative powers, so that all the regions can develop and progress as per the aspirations of the people of each region.
