The BJP on April 7 declared that the Congress had “lost the moral right to remain a political party” after its president Mallikarjun Kharge’s remarks at a public rally in Jaipur where he questioned attempts to draw a connection between Rajasthan and the scrapping of Article 370 which accorded special status to Jammu and Kashmir.
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“Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said in Rajasthan as to what difference does it make here with the removal of Article 370. If a party says what difference does it make in other States with the integration of Kashmir, it’s clear that you [Congress] have no respect for the oath taken by every one for the unity and integrity of the country,” BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said.
After Mr. Kharge’s remarks on Article 370, said Mr. Trivedi, the Congress, “which has almost lost the status or the right to be a national party, has now also lost the right to be even a political party from a moral point of view.” The Congress could now call itself a “conglomeration of the regional forces”, he added.
Earlier, on Saturday itself, Home Minister Amit Shah had hit out at the Congress dubbing Mr. Kharge’s remarks as “shameful”. He also reminded the Congress that Jammu and Kashmir was an integral part of India and that every State and citizen had a right over it just as the people of Jammu and Kashmir had a right over the rest of the country.