We will not tamper with Article 371, says Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said that the Centre will not scrap Article 371 of the Constitution, which grants special provisions to the north-eastern states.

Addressing the 68th Plenary Session of the North Eastern Council here, he said, "Article 371 is not a temporary provision like Article 370 was. It is a special provision. We respect that and will not tamper with it."

He accused opposition parties of sending a wrong message to the people of the north-eastern states that Article 371 will be scrapped.

"It is unfortunate that the opposition claimed that the BJP government at the Centre will now scrap Article 371. It is pertinent to clarify this because a few people do not want peace in these states and want to create a divide," he said.

Last month, the central government had scrapped the Article 370 of the Constitution, which conferred special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

The Centre also bifurcated the state into two Union territories - Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.