'Kashmir will be India's part even if Modi, BJP not in power'

Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah on Wednesday emphatically stated that no one will be able to separate Kashmir from India whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP were in power at the Centre, or not.

Addressing an election rally here, an area that falls under the Bongaon Lok Sabha constituency, Shah said if voted back to power, the saffron party will remove Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir.

"Modi is India's Prime Minister now. He will be elected as the Prime Minister again. But even if a time comes when neither Modiji nor BJP is in power at the centre, even then no one will be able to separate Kashmir from India," Shah said.

"Till the time a single BJP activist is alive, we will not let that happen. Kashmir is an inseparable part of India. It is jewel in the crown of our motherland. Give us 23 seats in Bengal. We promise we will abolish article 370 from Kashmir," he told the people here.

Attacking Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for inviting her former Jammu and Kashmir counterpart Omar Abdullah in the mega anti-BJP rally held in Kolkata on January 19, Shah demanded that Banerjee should clarify whether she supports Adbullah's statements seeking a separate Prime Minister for Kashmir.

"Mamata Banerjee had invited Omar Abdullah in Kolkata's Brigade Parade Ground and held his hand. Omar Abdula has given a statement that there should be a separate Prime Minister in Kashmir. Tell me should there be two Prime Ministers in a country?" he asked.

"I want to ask Mamata didi whether she agrees to the statement of Abdullah. I am sure she will be silent because it is a question of her vote bank," the BJP leader said.

Speaking in a region dominated by members of the Dalit Matua community, a Hindu sect who have migrated from Bangladesh, Shah reiterated that once re-elected, the Narendra Modi government will bring the citizenship Amendment Bill to ensure the citizenship rights for all the refugees in the country.

He also claimed that the ouster of Banerjee's Trinamool Congress government from Bengal will be confirmed once the results of 2019 polls are announced on May 23.

"Mamata didi, your ouster is confirmed. Once the results of the 2019 polls are announced and BJP wins 23 seats, your exit will be confirmed. The people have decided that when the election results are announced on May 23, a new sun of 'Paribartan' (change) will rise in Bengal," he added.

--IANS

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