New Delhi, Apr 12 (EFE).- Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during an election rally on Friday in the city of Udhampur in Jammu and Kashmir, promised to hold a long-delayed regional elections in the troubled region and the restoration of its statehood.
“The time is not far when Assembly Elections will be held in Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir will get the status of statehood,” the prime minister said.
Modi, leader of the Hindu nationalist BJP, defended his government’s decision to eliminate in 2019 an article of the Constitution guaranteeing semi-autonomy for the region.
The development was marked by the detention of thousands of activists and politicians, along with months of unprecedented restrictions and communication blockade.
Since 2018, Jammu and Kashmir has been under the direct control of the federal government at New Delhi.
Modi’s electoral promise, which was accompanied by claims of violence having declined in recent years in Kashmir under his direct rule, led to criticism from the opposition.
Former head of the Kashmir government and leader of the National Conference (NC) Omar Abdullah said during a press conference that the convening of regional elections before Sep. 30 is an obligation for the government following a Supreme Court ruling last December.
«It would have been a favor for us if he (PM Modi) had conducted elections before the verdict of the Supreme Court,» lamented the politician, who was held incommunicado for eight months after the elimination of semi-autonomy status.
Abdullah also accused BJP of not having faith in its own claims about increasing security in the Muslim-majority region, disputed between India and Pakistan since the partition of the subcontinent by the British and battered by a separatist insurgency since the 1990s.
“In their attempt to retain power in the erstwhile state, the BJP government has now suspended almost all tiers of democracy, and refuses to hold fresh elections,” said Jairam Ramesh of the opposition Indian National Congress, which is in alliance with the NC in Kashmir region.
Data from the South Asia Terrorism Portal show that nearly 40,000 people have died in the region since the start of the insurgency, although the number of victims has declined in recent years, with 72 deaths recorded in 2023 compared to 151 the year before.
However, following the suspension of the region’s semi-autonomy, there has been an increase in killings of Indian citizens from other regions. EFE
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