‘Wanted decision on Art 370 to happen with concurrence’
STATE TIMES NEWS
NEW DELHI: On the fifth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35(A), Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday described the step as a watershed moment in the nation’s history, starting a new era of progress and prosperity in Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
He said in a post on X, “I assure the people of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh that our government will keep working for them and fulfil their aspirations in the coming times.”
He said the move to scrap these provisions meant that the Constitution of India was implemented in these places in letter and spirit, in line with the vision of the great men and women who made the Constitution, he said.
“With abrogation came security, dignity and opportunity for the women, youth, backward, tribal and marginalised communities who were deprived of the fruits of development. At the same time, it has ensured that corruption, which plagued Jammu and Kashmir for decades, has been kept at bay,” the prime minister said.
“There was complete clarity in my mind that taking the public in Jammu and Kashmir into confidence was absolutely essential for the execution of the decision,” the Prime Minister said.
His remarks come in the foreword of a new book titled “370: Undoing the Unjust, A New Future for J&K”.
“We wanted the decision, whenever it would be taken, to happen with concurrence of the people rather than imposition,” he writes in the book, researched and written by non-profit organisation BlueKraft Digital Foundation and published under the Penguin Enterprise imprint.
The book mentions in detail how Modi managed to achieve the goal that he set out for himself.
The publishers said the book, which is scheduled to release this month, “chronicles, what is inarguably the greatest constitutional feat in India’s history and tells the inside story of how Prime Minister Modi managed the seemingly impossible”.
It “delves into multiple blunders at the time of independence that culminated into the unjust regimen of Article 370. It discusses the social, political and economic ramifications of Article 370 since its inception in 1949”, a statement by Penguin said on Monday, which marks five years of revocation of Article 370. “It sheds light on the historical reluctance to challenge this provision and the eventual paradigm shift brought about by its abrogation in 2019. Through careful examination, it discusses how the government resolved legal complexities and safeguarded against security threats to successfully execute the historic decision,” the statement said.
Replete with anecdotes, the book recounts the events leading to the abrogation and also chronicles the region’s history — from the ancient to contemporary times.
The publishers claimed this is the “first book of its kind on the Modi government where the actual decision-making process has been documented through interactions with top decision makers including Prime Minister Narendra Modi”.
In advance praise for the book, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said, “An eminently readable account of a crucial decision that has promoted national integration while transforming the development and security landscape of Jammu & Kashmir. It brings out how the political calculations and personal proclivities of an earlier era were finally countered by national sentiment.”
The Modi government had on this day in 2019 annulled these articles that gave special rights to the then Jammu and Kashmir state, which was also divided into two Union territories.
