Article 370 sowed seeds of terrorism, separatism in Kashmir: Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said Article 370 sowed seeds of separatism in the minds of the youth of Kashmir and the Narendra Modi government not only ended terrorism in the valley but also the ecosystem of terrorism. Shah said Article 370 and Article 35A, both of which were abrogated on August 5, 2019, were the key hurdles in the way of full integration of Kashmir into India. Referring to Kashmir's relations with the rest of India, the home minister said India is the only country in the world which is geo-cultural and whose boundaries are formed by its culture. India can be understood only from the Indian perspective and not from the geo-political perspective, he said this in New Delhi while releasing a book 'Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh: Through the Ages'.  The book was compiled and published by the National Book Trust, India, in collaboration with the Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR). “Time has come to get rid of history written to please the rulers,” he said.
Noting that over 40,000 lives were lost due to terrorism in Kashmir,  he said, “The Modi government has not only ended terrorism in Kashmir but also dismantled the entire ecosystem that sustained it.” “For years, the country watched in silence as violence plagued the region. After the revocation of Article 370, incidents of terrorism have reduced by 70 percent, proving that Article 370 was a catalyst for fueling terrorism,” he said.“There were 2,100 incidents of stone pelting in Kashmir in 2018 but in 2024 not a single incident of stone pelting took place,” Shah added.
Shah highlighted the significant changes in the valley since the revocation of Article 370. “Since then, Kashmir’s development has begun, just like any other part of India. The local body elections were held successfully, with over 25,000 people elected as panch, sarpanch, or district council members. Lok Sabha and assembly elections were held peacefully, and this year, Kashmir saw the highest voter turnout ever,” he said. He also noted the positive impact on tourism and industry: “Over 2.11 crore tourists have visited Jammu & Kashmir. In 2024 alone, 324 films and serials were shot in Kashmir, bringing back the golden era of the 1960s.” He questioned the Congress for not doing even 10 percent of the development work done by Modi government in the last 10 years during its time in government.