BJP national general secretary Tarun Chug took potshots at the Abdullahs, the Muftis and the Nehrus for “looting J&K for the past seven decades”, while flagging off a Tiranga Rally at Srinagar’s commercial hub Lal Chowk on Monday amid stringent security measures.
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Dozens of bikers, mainly from outside J&K, were flagged off by Mr. Chugh and BJP Yuva Morcha national president Tejasvi Surya.
“Those who looted J&K for seven decades failed to ensure progress in J&K. However, their properties continue to multiply. Two J&K families had turned J&K into a terrorism capital and our Prime Minister made it a tourism capital. The Abdullah and sons, the Mufti and sons and the Nehru and sons have been rejected by the people now,” Mr. Chugh said.
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Mr. Surya, who recited a poem on better future written by famous Pandit poet Dina Nath Nadim, said, “There is going to be a better future. There is better hope for tomorrow. A new dawn will come bringing more prosperity.”
He also tweeted a picture of BJP activists holding the Tricolour at the Ghanta Ghar in Lal Chowk, where separatists in the past unfurled Pakistani and green flags. “This one picture from today summarises the change Modi Ji and Amit Shah Ji have brought in Kashmir,” Mr. Surya said.
The bikers will carry the flags and reach the Kargil War Memorial on July 26 on the occasion of Kargil Vijay Diwas, a BJP spokesman said.
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BJP state president Ravinder Raina, while referring to Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti’s remarks that not many people will be left in J&K to carry the flag if Article 370 were removed, said, “I wish Ms. Mufti was here today to see how the youths were carrying the Tricolour in their hands and hearts”. He described the Tiranga rally as “a historic moment”.
On Ms. Mufti’s statement that former President Ram Nath Kovind fulfilled BJP’s agenda during his tenure, Mr. Raina said, “It’s the job of Ms. Mufti to spread poison among the minds of people”.
The BJP leaders also reiterated that the party was set to form the next government in J&K by winning a majority of seats.
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Security brings life to standstill
The stringent security measures put in place for the rally brought life to a standstill in and around Ghanta Ghar in Srinagar.
Shopkeepers alleged that they were stopped from opening the shops in the morning and no vehicle was allowed to pass through. All streets leading to the venue were sealed.
Srinagar’s reputed Tyndale-Biscoe and Mallinson schools located near the Ghanta Ghar were also closed due to security restrictions.
“Roads leading to Ghanta Ghar, Lal Chowk were blocked, shops shut and a school in the vicinity too has been shut on a Monday just so that a political party can showcase their nationalism. The claims of “change” and “normalcy” post 2019 stand exposed,” Peoples Democratic Party general secretary Ghulam Nabi Lone Hanjura said.