Scoffing at the BJP’s ‘Sankalp Patra’, its manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections, National Conference leader and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister, Omar Abdullah, on Sunday said it is aimed at the ‘destruction’ of the erstwhile state.
Speaking to ANI on Sunday, the former CM said, “I have been busy campaigning since morning. I have not read their manifesto as yet. But from what I have gathered, their manifesto has nothing for Jammu and Kashmir. The BJP’s manifestoes have always brought destruction to Jammu and Kashmir.”
He claimed that the INDIA bloc will win all five Lok Sabha constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir and one in Ladakh.
As part of the seat-sharing agreement reached between the INDIA partners, the Congress will contest Jammu, Udhampur and Ladakh parliamentary constituencies, while the National Conference will contest from the Anantnag-Rajouri, Srinagar and Baramulla Lok Sabha seats.
“We have still not lost hope of restoration of Article 370. There are many like-minded parties such as the DMK and TMC, which are with us on Article 370. The BJP did not lose hope when it had just 2 Lok Sabha seats so why should we?” the former CM said.
In its election manifesto–‘Sankalp Patra’, the BJP vowed to implement the Union Civil Code (UCC) and bring lasting peace to the Northeast, among other key poll promises.
The party released its manifesto on Sunday at its headquarters in New Delhi in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, with several Union Ministers and senior party office-bearers seated in the audience.
The state of Jammu and Kashmir was split into two Union Territories–Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh–following the Centre’s landmark decision to revoke the special constitutional privileges under Article 370 in October 2019.
The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act 2019 was passed by the Parliament in 2019, resulting in the abrogation of Article 370.
The BJP had won three out of six seats in Jammu and Kashmir in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, while the National Conference won the remaining three seats.
Polling in Jammu and Kashmir will take place in the first five phases, between April 19 and May 20. (ANI)
