Jammu, Sept 10: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson for Jammu & Kashmir, Abhijeet Jasrotia on Tuesday challenged Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to clarify why his party has entered into an alliance with the National Conference (NC) for the upcoming assembly elections in the union territory.
Addressing a press conference at the BJP election media centre here, where several other party leaders, including GL Raina, YV Sharma, General (Retd) Rakesh Sharma, and media in-charge Dr Pardeep Mahotra, were present, Jasrotia questioned Gandhi’s rationale, asking, “Does the opening of Mohabat Ki Dukan mean giving ticket to separatist and hardcore anti-nationals like Irfan Hafeez Lone? We all know Irfan Hafeez Lone is a separatist and anti-national. Congress must make it clear that under what compulsions it has given mandate to him.”
Referring to a recent statement by NC vice president Omar Abdullah about the limited power of a Chief Minister in J&K, the BJP spokesperson said, “This shows total confusion prevailing within the NC-Congress alliance.”
He also highlighted comments by NC MP Mian Altaf, who claimed that the alliance could set the NC back by 30 years, saying, “This further reflects the unclear motives behind the alliance.”
Jasrotia hailed the August 5, 2019, decision by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which led to the abrogation of Article 370, saying it restored peace in Jammu & Kashmir. “The removal of terrorism and stone-pelting incidents has paved the way for huge development in J&K,” he said. “Rahul Gandhi is enjoying ice cream in Kashmir due to peace restored by PM Modi. The credit for the completely changed environment in J&K goes to the Prime Minister.”
