Union Home Minister Amit Shah is reported to have called upon the top Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders from Jammu and Kashmir to further strengthen the organization for facing assembly elections in J-K whenever they are held after the finalization of electoral rolls by the Election Commission of India on 25 November, reported Daily Excelsior.
He reportedly stated this during a meeting with Core Group leaders of the J-K unit and other senior leaders at his residence in New Delhi this evening.
Insiders said the meeting lasted about an hour and the Home Minister took a detailed review of the political situation and development scenario of J-K.
The meeting was attended by BL Santosh (general secretary organizations), Union Minister of State in PM Jitendra Singh, Tarun Chug, general secretary, Incharge J-K, Ashish Sood, co-Incharge H&K, Ravinder Raina, UT president Narinder Singh, national secretary, Jugal Kishore Sharma, MP, Kavinder Gupta and Nirmal Singh, former Deputy Chief Ministers, Devender Singh Rana, Sunil Sethi, Shakti Raj Parihar, Sat Sharma, Sunil Sharma, Devender Manyal, Vibodh Gupta and Girdhari Lal Raina.
Prior to meeting with Shah, the BJP leaders had their meeting at the party headquarters in New Delhi. BJP president JP Nadda was scheduled to attend the meeting but couldn’t join due to preoccupation, reads the report.
The BJP leaders gave their viewpoint on the situation and also referred to protests by certain organizations including daily wagers etcetera.
“Though Jammu region is a strong bastion of the BJP, Kashmir is also equally important and we must strive to gain more political hold there,” Shah is reported to have told the BJP leaders during the meeting.
He said the party should be strengthened in the entire J-K and not only in the Jammu region. The party leaders should focus on Kashmir valley too, he is understood to have said.
There was a view that after the publication of the final electoral rolls on 25 November, the Election Commission of India will call an All Party Meeting on J-K elections in which the BJP, like other parties, will give its viewpoint. However, it is the prerogative of the Election Commission to take a call on the conduct of assembly elections.
But there was a unanimous view that the BJP should reach out to all sections and corners of J-K to further strengthen itself. For this purpose, as per the report, Tarun Chug is undertaking an extensive tour of the Jammu region from 29-31 August.
Assuring justice with Paharis, the meeting observed that there was no need for Gujjars and Bakerwals to believe that injustice will be meted out to them.
There was a unanimous view that everyone will be treated equally and fairly, reads the report.
The massive response to the ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’ campaign and Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav in Jammu and Kashmir was strongly appreciated by the Union Home Minister.
The BJP leaders welcomed initiatives of the Central and J-K governments on development front and hoped that the works and projects under Centrally Sponsored Schemes as well as the J-K government will be further expedited.
As BJP J-K president Ravinder Raina is completing his second term, there were indications that either Raina will get a third term or there will be an election for the post of party chief, reads the report by Daily Excelsior.
