Amit Shah calls Pulwama attack "cowardice", says martyrs' sacrifice will not go in vain

BJP president Amit Shah has termed the Pulwama attack "cowardice" and said that the sacrifice of the martyrs will not go in vain as there is a BJP government and not a Congress one at the Centre.

Shah was addressing a BJP youth rally in Lakhimpur district of Assam on Sunday.

"By killing our soldiers, if you think you have won the battle, then you're wrong. Be it in the Northeast or in Kashmir, the BJP government has never tolerated a threat to India's security. Our government is committed to fight against terrorism and we have proved it in the past through the surgical strikes as well as through diplomacy. The whole world accepts the political will of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to fight against terrorism," Shah said.

Promising not to let Assam become another turmoil-ridden state like Jammu & Kashmir (J&K), the BJP chief defended the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016 and said, "We've put a stop to infiltration by bringing the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Assam. If we come to power again, we will bring the CAB to identify and deport each one of the illegal Bangladeshis living in Assam."

Claiming that there was a misinformation campaign over the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill 2016, he added, "Things are going to be very bad in Assam given the demographic changes that are taking place here. But some people want to use the anger over this Bill for their petty benefits."

Shah questioned the roles of the state's Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) and the Congress governments in implementing the Assam Accord and said that none of these parties took any steps to stop infiltration.

Referring to Clause VI of the Assam Accord, which assures a constitutional safeguard for the indigenous people of the state, Shah said the Modi government has constituted a high powered committee for its implementation and it will be implemented if the BJP comes back to power in the next elections.

The BJP president also highlighted the development work done by the Modi government in Assam and said that while the previous UPA government gave merely Rs 79,000 crore to the state, the NDA government has so far sanctioned close to Rs 3 lakh crore under different schemes and in the 14th Finance Commission.

He appealed to the people of the Northeast to vote for the BJP in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections and said that the BJP is bound to come back to power.

--IANS

ah/rtp/bg