'Article 370 is history, will never be restored': Amit Shah in J&K ahead of polls

The National Conference, which is alliance with the Congress this election, has promised to restore Article 370, which was abrogated in 2019.

The Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir will be the first since 2014 and are also being keenly watched to gauge how the people feel about the removal of the provision.

Alongside the removal of Article 370, the state of Jammu and Kashmir also bifurcated into two Union Territories, including Ladakh, in 2019 and the government has assured that J&K will be given statehood soon.

During his two-day visit to the valley, Shah said the former state has been very important to the BJP since Independence and the party has made efforts since then to keep it connected with India.

"Till 2014, the shadow of separatism and terrorism hung over Jammu and Kashmir. Various state and non-state actors tried to destabilise it and governments adopted a policy of appeasement. But, whenever the history of India and Jammu and Kashmir is written, the years between 2014 and 2024 will be written in golden letters for J&K," the minister said.

"There was a time when, under the shadow of Article 370, we saw governments bowing down to the demands of separatists and organisations like the Hurriyat. In these 10 years, Article 370 and 35-A (which gave the  J&K legislature the right to define permanent residents and give them special privileges) have become part of the past. They are not part of the Constitution," he added.

Shah claimed that the removal of Article 370 under PM Narendra Modi on August 5, 2019, triggered development in the state and said he had read the National Conference's manifesto as well as noted the Congress' "silent support" for it.

"But I want to make it clear to the country: Article 370 has become history. It can never come back and we will never allow it to come back. Because Article 370 was what led to the youth being handed guns and stones in Kashmir," he said.

Jammu and Kashmir will vote in three phases between September 18 and October 1. Counting of votes will take place on October 8.