Reacting to former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti's statement in which she warned the Centre to restart talks with Kashmiris by referring to the recent developments in Afghanistan, Union Minister Anurag Thakur alleged that despite forming an alliance, the people of the union territory "rejected the Guptkar Gang".
He further alleged that they did nothing for Jammu and Kashmir over the years, adding that all they can do is to criticize the Central government.
Thakur stated that due to the abrogation of Article 370 and the formation of the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh in 2019, terrorist activities and killings have reduced in Jammu and Kashmir.
Addressing a press conference here on Sunday, Thakur said, "She needs to understand that Article 370 has been withdrawn from Jammu and Kashmir forever. There were demands for making Ladakh a union territory which has already been completed. The incidents of terrorist activities and killings have reduced in Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir is running on the tracks of progress and development.
The Union Minister said, "If you have heard Union Home Minister Amit Shah's speeches in the Lok Sabha, he has given details of how much work has been done in Jammu and Kashmir since 2019 when Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh were made union territories. It has not been even two years since the abrogation of article 370 and the formation of these two union territories but the speed of development activities there is commendable.
"So, the families who have over the years done nothing for Jammu and Kashmir, can only sit back and criticize. They also created the Guptkar gang, still, the people of Jammu and Kashmir rejected them. So, their statements shouldn't be taken seriously," added Thakur.
Glorifying Taliban, Mufti had said superpower America was forced to pack its bags in Afghanistan and warned the Union government to restart talks the way Atal Bihari Vajpayee did and restore Article 370 otherwise it will be too late.
Speaking at a public event, Mufti had on Sunday said, "Don't test our patience and change your ways while you still have a chance. Remember how Vajpayee initiated the peace process. You must restart talks with Kashmiris and return whatever you have looted."
Meanwhile, responding to a question on the Congress's allegations of controlling the media, Thakur who is also the Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting, said, "Who will walk with the party which did not manage to win even a single seat in Bengal, which has failed to elect a president in the last two years and whose women MPs held the collar of the security officials during the recently concluded Monsoon session of the Parliament, whose MPs climb the tables when the farm laws were discussed in the House. What do you think such a party can achieve? "
( With inputs from ANI )
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