Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday termed the People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), a conglomerate of political parties in Jammu and Kashmir, an “unholy global alliance” and alleged that along with the Congress, it wants to take Jammu and Kashmir back to the era of terror and turmoil. In a series of tweets, Shah alleged that the “Gupkar Gang is going global” and wants foreign forces to intervene in Jammu and Kashmir.
The conglomerate of regional and national political parties in Jammu and Kashmir was formed defending the restoration of the Article 370, scrapped last year. “Congress and the Gupkar Gang want to take J&K back to the era of terror and turmoil. They want to take away rights of Dalits, women and tribals that we have ensured by removing Article 370. This is why they’re being rejected by the people everywhere,” he said.
Shah said Jammu and Kashmir has been, is and will always remain an integral part of India and the people of the country will no longer tolerate an unholy ‘global gathbandhan’ against India’s national interest. “Either the Gupkar Gang swims along with the national mood or else the people will sink it,” he said. The home minister also questioned Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi whether they support the PAGD.
“The Gupkar Gang also insults India’s Tricolour. Do Sonia Ji and Rahul Ji support such moves of the Gupkar Gang? They should make their stand crystal clear to the people of India,” he said. On August 4, 2019, a day before the central government announced the abrogation of the Article 370, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, political parties in Kashmir, except the BJP, met at the residence of National Conference president Farooq Abdullah at Gupkar Road in Srinagar.
They had also issued a joint statement defending Article 370. The constituents of the conglomerate includetheNational Conference, Peoples Democratic Party, CPI-M, Jammu and Kashmir People’s Conference and Awami National Conference.
The Congress recently announced that it will have a seat sharing arrangement with the PAGD for the forthcoming elections to the District Development Council in Jammu and Kashmir. National Conference’s Farooq Abdullah is its chairman and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti vice-chairperson. Veteran CPI-M leader M Y Tarigami is its convenor while People’s Conference leaderSajjad Gani Lone is the spokesperson.
Kashmir parties slam Shah
Former Jammu and Kashmir chief ministers Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah hit back at Amit Shah over his ‘Gupkar Gang’ remarks. While the PDP president said such comments were aimed at diverting people’s attention from rising unemployment and inflation, the NC leader corrected Shah saying the People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) is a legitimate political alliance and not a gang.
Alleging that the BJP government is playing divisive politics, Mehbooba said the “BJP’s stale tactic of dividing India by projecting themselves as saviours and political opponents as internal and imagined enemies is far too predictable now.”
“Love jihad, tukde tukde and now Gupkar Gang dominates the political discourse instead of (issues) like rising unemployment and inflation,” she said.
Meanwhile, Omar Abdullah also slammed the BJP leader saying, “I can understand the frustration behind this attack by the Hon’ble Home Minister. He had been briefed that the People’s Alliance was preparing to boycott elections. This would have allowed the BJP & newly formed King’s party a free run in J&K. We didn’t oblige them.”
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