The Jammu and Kashmir unit of the BJP on Sunday hit out at Kashmir's chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq for urging political parties to unite for the restoration of Article 370, claiming that such statements are attempts to provoke the public and disrupt the peaceful atmosphere that has emerged in the valley after years of violence.
BJP spokesperson Altaf Thakur said Parliament took a "historic" constitutional decision on August 5, 2019, and the Supreme Court subsequently upheld the abrogation of Article 370.
"Mirwaiz Umar Farooq should understand that Article 370 is not coming back. Parliament has buried Article 370 forever, and no political party, leader or pressure group can reverse that constitutional reality," Thakur said.
He said such calls risked dragging Kashmir back into the politics of the past.
"Statements of this nature are meant to provoke people and vitiate the peaceful atmosphere in the Valley once again. This will never be allowed. The nation has paid a very heavy price for the return of peace to Kashmir. The sacrifices of our brave security forces and civilians, including political workers who laid down their lives for peace and democracy, cannot be allowed to be undermined or challenged through politically motivated statements," Thakur said.
He noted that Kashmir has experienced enough bloodshed, shutdowns, stone-pelting, and disruption, and that the people should not be pushed into another cycle of instability."Those who attempt to revive old fault lines must understand that Kashmir has moved ahead. Our youth want education, employment, entrepreneurship, investment, tourism and opportunities. They do not want to return to an era when shutdown calendars dictated their lives and violence dictated the future," he said.
Thakur mentioned that political parties were free to express their views within the constitutional framework, but attempts to create agitation around an issue that had already been constitutionally settled would serve no purpose.
"Democracy gives everyone the right to speak and participate, but democracy cannot be reduced to repeatedly demanding the reversal of a constitutional decision that has already been upheld by the highest court of the country," he said.
On the issue of statehood, Thakur said the BJP has made its position clear that it would be restored at an appropriate time.
"There is a clear distinction between statehood and Article 370. Statehood will be restored at an appropriate time, as has been stated by the Government. But there is absolutely no question of bringing back Article 370," he said. Those spreading confusion on this issue should stop misleading the people," he said.