Row over article 370: BJP ministers told to avoid contentious topics

PM Modi had said Article 370 was more of a bane for the people of J&K, as they have been unable to reap the benefits of several central welfare schemes

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday asked its ministers not to comment on controversial subjects such as Article 370, which gave special status to Jammu & Kashmir. If ministers were to comment on this subject, they should stick to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's argument that it be debated how the contentious Article had caused more harm than good to the state, the party added.

On Tuesday, Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, Jitendra Singh, had told the media the new government was open to debate on the merits and demerits of Article 370, adding it would make efforts to "convince the unconvinced". Singh's comment had drawn criticism from various quarters.

Singh was earlier the BJP spokesman for Jammu & Kashmir. The BJP leadership sent Singh the message that he needed to quickly make a transition from being a spokesperson in Jammu & Kashmir, where the BJP was in Opposition and Article 370 an emotive electoral issue, to being a "responsible" minister at the Centre.

Earlier, Prime Minister Modi had said Article 370 was more of a bane for the people of Jammu & Kashmir, as they have been unable to reap the benefits of several central welfare schemes such as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, as well as provisions such as reservation for women or Scheduled Tribes.

However, the BJP leadership has started conceding repealing Article 370 is an impossible task, given the National Democratic Alliance lacks three-fourths majority in the Lok Sabha. More, as a BJP leader said, the party would require similar numbers in the Jammu & Kashmir Assembly, too.

One leader reminisced how late BJP leader Pramod Mahajan would deal with the issue of repealing Article 370. "During the days of the Vajpayee government, he would tell people in the party 'give me 370 (MPs) in the Lok Sabha to repeal 370'," the leader said.

In Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee president Saifuddin Soz said Article 370 "was an integral part of the basic structure of the Constitution and it could neither be amended nor abrogated by any authority in India, unless the people of Jammu & Kashmir wanted it".

The Congress said there were political motives behind Singh raising the issue.