Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his address to the nation, said Articles 370 and 35A were being used by Pakistan to instigate some people in Jammu and Kashmir. "Article 370 and Article 35A were being used as weapons by Pakistan to instigate some people," PM Modi said. This was Modi's first public speech after the government altered the special status of Jammu and Kashmir by repealing Article 370 and Article 35A.
In a special broadcast, the prime minister said: "I congratulate people of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and the whole nation. When some things are their forever we presume they will never change or go away. Article 370 was something similar."
Modi said the dream of "Sardar Patel, Baba Saheb Ambedkar, Dr Syama Prasad Mukherjee, Atalji and of crores of patriots has been fulfilled".
Modi explained the government's vision on Jammu and Kashmir, and how it plans to bring about development to the now Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh.
"We as a nation, as a family, have taken a historic decision. A system due to which brothers and sisters of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh were deprived of many rights and which was a big obstacle to their development, that system has been done away with," Modi said.
The government has planned to infuse big investments into the state, fast track the Srinagar Metro and involve people in the development process, all of which officials say were earlier being hampered by Article 370 of the Constitution that gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
"In different states of the country sanitation workers come under the sanitation worker act, but workers from J&K were deprived of it. In many states strong laws are their to stop atrocities against dalits, but this was not the case in J&K," Modi said.
"Article 370 only made separatism and corruption prosper," he added.
With the separatists and pro-independence sympathisers under lockdown, the NDA government plans to roll out big time development in the two border Union Territories.
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