Hope Article 370 will be restored in J&K with China’s support: Farooq Abdullah

Former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah on Sunday held the Centre’s decision to abrogate Article 370 responsible for the Chinese moves at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh.

Speaking exclusively to India Today, Farooq Abdullah said that China “never accepted” the Abrogation of Article 370.

   

“Whatever they are doing at LAC in Ladakh is all because of the abrogation of Article 370, which they never accepted. I am hopeful that with their support, Article 370 will be restored in J&K,” Farooq said.

“I never invited the Chinese President, it was [PM] Modi who not only invited him, but did jhoola sawari with him. He [PM Modi] even took him to Chennai and had food with him,” Farooq said.

He said that “what the government had done on August 5 [in 2019] was unacceptable.”

Farooq Abdullah said that he was not even allowed to speak on the problems of Jammu and Kashmir in Parliament.

Article 370, combined with Article 35A, accorded Jammu and Kashmir special status under the Constitution of India, allowing it to have a separate Constitution and a separate penal code among other legal distinctions.

Parliament passed two resolutions on August 5 last year. The first rendered Article 370 inoperative in Jammu and Kashmir by applying the power granted under the same Article of the Constitution. The second resolution was for bifurcation of the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories — Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

The reorganisation of J&K came into effect on October 31.

After the abrogation, top Jammu and Kashmir political leaders including Farooq Abdullah, his son and former CM Omar Abdullah and PDP chief and former CM Mehbooba Mufti were put under arrest. The Abdullahs have been released since. Currently, India and China are locked in a tense border standoff in Ladakh.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

2 × three =