News Credit : News18
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in an exclusive interview with News18 Network, issued a challenge to the Congress and state governments to reinstate Article 370.
During the discussion, Network18 Group Editor-in-Chief Rahul Joshi asked Modi about the revocation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s statement that she would resist the enforcement of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Modi explained, “Firstly, anyone who truly understands the Indian Constitution, the federal structure of India, and the distribution of powers wouldn’t make such statements because it’s beyond their jurisdiction. Even if I were a state’s chief minister, such actions wouldn’t be possible. The central government acts within its remit, as do the state governments. However, misleading the public has unfortunately become a common tactic nowadays.”
He added, “Secondly, I openly challenge the Congress party to declare in a press conference that they will restore Article 370. They frequently speak of the Constitution and refer to Babasaheb Ambedkar while criticizing us heavily. But it’s important to note that for 70 years, Ambedkar’s Constitution was not fully applicable in Jammu and Kashmir. Only after the abolition of Article 370 have communities like Dalits and the Valmiki community begun receiving reservations there for the first time. Do they have the courage to say they will bring back Article 370? Would any party actually dare to make such a statement?”
The Centre, in March 2024, implemented the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). This law aims to provide Indian citizenship to refugees from six communities (Hindus, Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, and Parsis) fleeing persecution from Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan. Despite the BJP asserting that the CAA is not anti-Muslim and does not strip Indian Muslims of their citizenship, the exclusion of Muslims has sparked criticism from opposition parties. In Assam, the National Register of Citizens (NRC) was established to document legal citizens, with those excluded from the list being offered a chance to apply for citizenship under the CAA.
On August 5, 2019, then President Ram Nath Kovind announced the repeal of the provisions of Article 370, which had granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir. This led to the abolition of the region’s separate constitution, allowing the central government to reorganize the former state into a Union Territory (UT), overseen by a Lieutenant Governor.
