NEW DELHI: BJP Jammu and Kashmir spokesperson Altaf Thakur on Sunday rejected Kashmir’s chief cleric chairman Mirwaiz Umar Farooq‘s call for political parties to unite for the restoration of Article 370, saying there was “no question” of bringing back the constitutional provision.Thakur said Parliament had taken a “historic” constitutional decision to abrogate Article 370 and that the Supreme Court had subsequently upheld it. He accused the Mirwaiz of making statements that could disturb the peace that has returned to the Valley after years of violence.“Mirwaiz Umar Farooq needs to realize that Article 370 will not be reinstated. No political party, leader, or pressure group can undo the fundamental truth that Parliament has permanently buried Article 370,” Thakur said.He said attempts to revive the issue risked pushing Kashmir back into a period of political instability.“These kinds of statements are intended to incite people and disturb the tranquility of the Valley once more. This will never be permitted. The return of peace to Kashmir has come at a very high cost to the country. Thakur stated, “We cannot allow politically motivated statements to undermine or challenge the sacrifices made by our courageous security forces and civilians, including political workers who gave their lives for peace and democracy.”Thakur said people in Kashmir should not be pushed into another cycle of violence, shutdowns and unrest after having endured years of disruption.“Those who try to resurrect old fault lines need to realize that Kashmir has progressed. Our young people are looking for the chances to educate themselves, work, entrepreneurship, investment, and travel. “They don’t want to go back to a time, when violence dictated the future and shutdown calendars controlled their lives,” he added in the statement.Thakur said political parties were free to express their views within the Constitution, but argued that repeatedly seeking reversal of a constitutional decision upheld by the Supreme Court was futile.“Democracy gives 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 stated.He also reiterated the BJP’s position that statehood for Jammu and Kashmir would be restored at an appropriate time, while insisting that statehood and Article 370 were separate issues.“Statehood and Article 370 are clearly different. The government has declared that statehood would be restored at a suitable moment. However, there is no way that Article 370 could be reinstated,”. “Those who are causing confusion on this matter need are advised to stop misleading the public,” he stated.Earlier, Mirwaiz had criticised the National Conference government’s performance, saying its current position differed from commitments made during the 2024 Assembly elections.“The people’s rights have been taken away, Jammu & Kashmir has been split, and all of our legal and constitutional obligations have been totally disregarded,” he said.
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While acknowledging that issues such as electricity, roads and development were important, Mirwaiz said they were secondary to what he described as the broader question concerning the status of Jammu and Kashmir.“ But I think these are secondary issues. The real issue is that the very existence of the people of Jammu & Kashmir is under threat. At this juncture, all political parties in J&K should not only raise their voice for the restoration of statehood but also seek the restoration of Article 370, which was the basis accession (with India),” he stated.Mirwaiz also alleged that the Union government had broken its commitments to the people of Jammu and Kashmir dating back to 1947, including constitutional guarantees.
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