Srinagar, Aug 25, KNT: Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister Prof. Saifuddin Soz on Monday said that it was meaningless to launch campaigns for the restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, asserting that statehood was a right that could not be taken away.
In a statement issued to the press, Soz maintained that the real aspiration of the people was the restoration of internal autonomy as provided under Article 370 of the Constitution of India.
“It is wrong for anybody to collect signatures for restoration of statehood. Nobody can take away statehood. People like me are waiting for the Peoples’ Movement for restoration of the Autonomy enshrined in Article 370,” Soz said.
📢 8,000+ readers already joined for instant Kashmir News Trust updates
He recalled that it was on the strength of Article 370 that the then tallest leader of Jammu and Kashmir, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah, had agreed to support the accession of the state to India. “The Government of India has now wrongfully abrogated Article 370 of the Constitution. The real demand of the people is restoration of internal autonomy,” he added.
Soz reiterated that the issue of statehood was secondary and that priority should be given to reclaiming the constitutional guarantees that formed the basis of Jammu and Kashmir’s relationship with the Union of India.
