Demands Restoration of J&K’s Rights “As a Matter of Right, Not Charity”
Srinagar, August 05: J&K Peoples Conference President and MLA Handwara Sajad Gani Lone on Wednesday marked seven years since the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A, calling it a day of historic betrayal and disempowerment for the people of Jammu & Kashmir.
“August 5, 2019 was a brutal coup against the people of J&K. It will be held with contempt and disdain by the people of J&K, for all times to come,” Lone said in a sharp statement.
Describing it as the day everything was taken away, PC President pointed to the abrogation of Article 370 and Article 35A and the subsequent downgrading of the full-fledged state of Jammu & Kashmir to a Union Territory a move he termed as rubbing salt into the wounds of an already aggrieved people.
Lone appealed to the broader Indian public to reflect on the historical context of these decisions. “These were promises made to the people of J&K on the eve of accession,” he said, adding that those commitments were gradually reversed over the decades, until whatever remained was “brutally taken away” on that day in 2019.
He closed his statement with a note of hope, expressing his aspiration for a future where the people of J&K are restored their rights not as an act of grace, but as a matter of entitlement.
“I hope for the day when the people of J&K will be empowered again, as a matter of right, and not as a matter of charity,” he said.
