Jammu, August 4: Leader of Opposition in the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly, Sunil Sharma, on Tuesday rejected the demand for a separate state for Jammu, asserting that Jammu and Kashmir constitute one unit and cannot be divided.
Speaking to reporters, Sharma said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) does not support the demand for a separate state for the Jammu region. His remarks come amid protests by some organisations in Jammu seeking separate statehood.
“Jammu and Kashmir is one unit. These cannot be separated. The BJP rejects the concept and demand for a separate state for Jammu,” Sharma said.
He also criticized the National Conference (NC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for observing August 5 as a “Black Day” to mark the anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370.
Sharma said the two parties had accepted the constitutional changes brought about in 2019, arguing that their participation in elections after the reorganization of the erstwhile state reflected their acceptance of the new political reality.
On the issue of restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, the BJP leader said the matter would be discussed in Parliament and that a decision on restoring statehood would follow that process. [KNT]
