New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi had corrected Jawaharlal Nehru's "blunders" regarding Jammu and Kashmir's accession to India by nullifying Article 370, the BJP said on Thursday. It has also demanded an apology from Congress. During a press conference marking the 75th anniversary of the region's accession, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia claimed that the first prime minister made five mistakes, including delaying action on the region's king Hari Singh's accession proposal. He claimed that Jammu and Kashmir, as well as the country as a whole, had to pay a price for allowing Pakistan to capture a portion of the region (Pakistan-occupied Kashmir).
Hitting out at the Congress, he said, "If timely action was taken, then there would be no part of the state under Pakistan's occupation. The Congress since then spread lies and suppressed truth about the issue." Nehru then took an "internal issue" to the United Nations, making Pakistan a party, he added. Bhatia cited Nehru's statement to claim that the king first proposed the idea in July 1947, but the then-prime minister dithered and allegedly prioritised his and his friend's interests, a reference to Sheikh Abdullah, over the country's. The BJP leader also denounced him for floating the idea of a plebiscite, claiming there was no provision for it in the Independence Act under which hundreds of princely states merged with India.
Special provisions were also granted to Jammu and Kashmir, which is now a union territory, under Article 370, and the country paid a high price for it, according to Bhatia. Claiming that then-home minister Vallabhbhai Patel was opposed to Nehru's policies, he stated that if Jammu and Kashmir were merged with the country like other princely states, there would most likely be no "jihadi terrorism." Modi has corrected those errors, and his strong leadership is now pointing the way for the rest of the world, he said. Bhatia also used comments made by Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury in Lok Sabha in 2019 during a debate on a resolution to nullify Article 370 to attack the opposition party.
BJP says Prime Minister Narendra Modi corrected "blunders" of first PM Jawaharlal Nehru related to Jammu and Kashmir's accession to India by nullifying Article 370; demands apology from Congress
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 27, 2022
