Congress "failed" J&K minorities during its rule: Javadekar

Union minister and BJP leader Prakash Javadekar on Monday accused the Congress of doing injustice with minorities and other communities in Jammu and Kashmir during its long stay in power.

He hit back at senior Congress leader P Chidambaram for his comment on abrogation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status, saying various communities, including minorities, of J&K failed to get justice during the 70-year rule of the party.

Chidambaram on Sunday said the Union government had revoked Jammu and Kashmir's special status because it is a Muslim-dominated state and had not done so if Hindus were in a majority there.

"Such arguments have no meaning now. The Congress should tell us why minorities in Jammu and Kashmir were not given the rights to run educational institutions and why justice was not done to the sanitary workers during its 70- -year rule?" he asked.

The Information and Broadcasting Minister was addressing a press conference at the BJP office in Indore.

He said the deprived sections in J&K could not get justice under the long Congress rule due to the existence of Article 370 that granted special status to the border state which has been reorganised into a Union Territory.

"Justice is being meted out to these communities now after revocation of the special status," Javadekar said.

In a historic decision, the Centre on August 5 revoked the special status enjoyed by Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370. Subsequently, Parliament also passed a bill to bifurcate the region into two Union Territories.

He said the Congress should also explain its "failure" to implement the Right to Education (RTE) Act as well as the provisions of reservation to the SC, ST and Other Backward Classes in J&K during its rule.

"Why the previous Congress governments of the country failed to implement the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act in this state? Why it failed to implement forest rights for tribals and to provide security to whistle-blowers?" he asked.

Asked his party colleague Shivraj Singh Chauhan's remarks in which he had held first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru responsible for J&K "mess", Javadekar replied, "I have not heard the reported statement of Chouhan.

"Anyway, I don't need to comment on this because he himself has clarified the matter.