Amit Shah assures election, statehood after delimitation

Reviews security, meet victims of militancy, to address rally today

Jammu: Asserting that the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi is committed to bring peace in Jammu and Kashmir, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that the assembly election will be held in the Union Territory after delimitation and restoration of statehood will follow.
Shah said he has made a promise in Parliament that the statehood of J&K would be restored and it would be done after the assembly elections.
“Elections will happen. (Politicians from Kashmir want that the) Delimitation be stopped. Why? Because it hurts their politics. Now, such things will not stop in Kashmir,” Shah said during an interaction with the members of youth clubs of the union territory after starting his three day long visit of J&K.
"The youth of Kashmir will get opportunities, so a right delimitation will be done, which will be followed by elections and then the status of the statehood will be restored. I have said this in the country's Parliament and this is the roadmap, he said.
Shah said he felt pleased after his interaction with the members of the youth clubs as the youth of Kashmir has now "set out on the right path and become a shareholder in the journey of development".
I wish you all the very best. Keep moving forward and take benefit from this opportunity of youth clubs and support the administration, he said.
He also sought the support of the youth of Kashmir in realising Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "vision of a peaceful and developed" J-K.
The government will not allow anyone to create hurdles in the path of peace and development in Kashmir, Shah, who is on his first visit to Jammu and Kashmir since Article 370 was revoked in August 2019, said during an interaction with the members of youth clubs of the union territory.
I have come here to forge a friendship with the youth of Kashmir. Join hands with Modi ji and the Government of India and become partners in the journey to take Kashmir forward, he said.
The Union Home Minister said the youths of Kashmir should take advantage of the various opportunities being created by the administration for their progress.
God has made Kashmir as heaven with its natural beauty, but Modi ji wants to see peace, prosperity and development here as well. For that, I have come here to seek support from the youth of Kashmir.
The administration has lent a hand of friendship, youth clubs have been created, you have been given a platform, an opportunity, so come forward and take this opportunity. Make democracy stronger here, let the youths respond to the elements who try to make people go astray, he said.
Shah asserted the government's commitment to bringing peace and development in Jammu and Kashmir.
"Rest assured, the developmental journey in Kashmir will not stop, and no one will stop J-K from becoming an ideal state with respect to development, peace, infrastructure and prosperity, he added.
Earlier, Amit Shah drove straight to meet the family of a police officer killed by terrorists. He later chaired a meeting to review the security situation in the Valley.
The home minister, who is here on a three-day visit, was received at the technical airport here by Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and advisor Farooq Khan.
It was a day of heavy rain and snow in several parts of the Valley. If the weather holds, he will visit Jammu on Sunday to address a public rally and return to Srinagar, officials said.
Number one on his agenda was meeting the family of Jammu and Kashmir Police Inspector Parvaiz Ahmad who was shot dead by terrorists on June 22 near his home in Nowgam on the outskirts of the city while he was returning after offering evening prayers at a mosque.
Shah offered his condolences to the family and handed over documents of appointment to a government job to Ahmad's widow, Fatima Akhtar, on compassionate grounds, a home ministry official said.
Today visited the family of martyr Parvaiz Ahmad Dar and paid tributes to him. I and the nation are proud of his bravery. Jammu and Kashmir Police is making all efforts to realise the vision of PM Modi for a new JK," Shah said in a tweet later.
After going to Nowgam, Shah reviewed the security situation and steps taken to combat terrorism in Kashmir Valley, particularly following the targeted killings of civilians, mostly non-local labourers and minorities.
During the meeting, held at the Raj Bhavan here, the home minister was briefed on steps taken to eliminate terrorism from the union territory and counter-infiltration measures by the security forces, officials said.
The meeting was attended by top civil administration officials, including the lieutenant governor and senior security officials from the Army, CRPF, police and other agencies, they said.
Shah will also flag off the inaugural Srinagar-Sharjah flight and interact with members of a youth club here.
This is his first visit since Jammu and Kashmir's special status under Article 370 was revoked on August 5, 2019, and the state bifurcated into the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
Security was beefed up across Kashmir ahead of Shah's visit that comes in the wake of the spate of civilian attacks. Additional forces have been deployed, particularly in the city, officials said.
Fifty companies of additional paramilitary forces, about 5,000 troopers, are being inducted into the Valley as a precautionary measure.
Bunkers manned by CRPF forces have come up in several areas of the city as well as in other parts of Kashmir valley, the officials said.
In 2019, too, when he last visited the Valley, Shah had met family of a slain police officer.