Rashid, MP from Baramulla Lok Sabha seat, told reporters that if the ‘India’ alliance assures us that it will restore Article 370 if it comes to power in Delhi, I will ask each of my candidates to take a pledge to get every single vote of their supporters for them.
Independent MP from Baramulla in Jammu and Kashmir and Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) chief Sheikh Abdul Rashid alias Engineer on Thursday said upon reaching Srinagar that he will support the opposition alliance ‘India’ candidates in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly elections if it promises to restore Article 370 of the Constitution if it comes to power at the Centre. Rashid, MP from Baramulla Lok Sabha seat, told reporters, “If the ‘India’ alliance assures us that it will restore Article 370 if it comes to power in Delhi, I will ask each of my candidates to take a pledge to get every single vote of their supporters for them.”
Opposition parties fought the Lok Sabha elections this year together under the ‘Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance’ (INDIA). Rashid was released on interim bail by a court on Wednesday to campaign for the assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. He said that if India wants to fulfill its dream of becoming a global power, then it will have to solve the Kashmir issue.
He said, “If India has to become Vishwa Guru, then the Kashmir issue must be resolved. If you (Modi) have a better solution, please tell us. You are saying that the other part (of Kashmir) wants to join this part. This may be true, but how will we find out?” The leader, who is facing charges of funding terrorism, said that if he is being dubbed a separatist for talking about resolving the Kashmir issue, then the entire north Kashmir region is separatist because people here have voted for him.
He said, “I want to make it clear that we are neither enemies of India, nor agents of Pakistan. We are agents of our conscience. Modi took away everything from us on August 5, 2019 – illegally and unconstitutionally.” He said that Article 370 will not be restored by sitting at home and giving statements. He said, “How will 370 be restored? You have to protest at Lal Chowk and be ready to face lathis. But they (National Conference and PDP) cannot do that. When Amit Shah said that no one other than the BJP government can restore full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, he did not even dare to say that we will fight for it. This does not mean that we have to be violent. Gandhiji did this through non-violence.”
Expressing grief over the statement made against him by PDP president Mehbooba Mufti, he said that he was removed from the post of Chief Minister through a tweet by BJP leader Ram Madhav. Rashid said, “If Mehbooba had resigned in protest against the BJP’s plan to remove Article 370, I would have said that she is a lioness. But she did not even know when Ram Madhav tweeted that the (PDP-BJP) government is no more.”
He also claimed that National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah knew in advance that the Centre was going to revoke Article 370. Rashid targeted those who tried to show that they won the Lok Sabha elections due to sympathy votes. The Lok Sabha member also predicted that People’s Conference president Sajad Lone and Omar Abdullah will lose the assembly elections from both their seats. Lone is contesting from Handwara and Kupwara, while Abdullah is a candidate from Ganderbal and Budgam seats.