Unification, not division should be call in J&K: Azad

Srinagar, Jan 17: Prominent political leader and former Chief Minister of J&K Ghulam Azad Azad has strongly rejected recent statements of some political leaders on the division of J&K and called for a political discussion on the unity of the state of J&K as existed before the abrogation of Article 370.
Reacting to the development, Azad made it clear that he is opposed to the division of the region anymore.
Azad stated that the transition of Ladakh to a Union Territory has already resulted in a 60 percent loss. He added that he is categorically against any further division of Jammu and Kashmir, dismissing the idea of Jammu statehood as a reckless and unsubstantiated statement.
“Breaking J&K into further pieces would only aggravate the sense of grievance and make our common future more distant. The people of Jammu and Kashmir require an integrated platform for political justice, economic progress, and social cohesion. Our focus should remain on unity, peace, and joint progress, and not on lines of division,” said Azad to KNS.
The fresh political storm erupted in Jammu and Kashmir after BJP leader revived his long-standing demand for separate statehood for the Jammu region.
BJP leader reiterated his long-standing charge that Jammu has faced systematic discrimination under what he described as “Kashmir-centric rule.”
He argued that the Jammu must receive equitable treatment in development, political representation and governance. In this context, he again alluded to the need for a Hindu chief minister, which he believes would help address what he sees as a persistent structural imbalance. While BJP leader has raised such demands earlier as well, his remarks continue to spark political debate.
His remarks triggered sharp reactions, with Farooq Abdullah likening any attempt to divide the two regions to separating the head from the body.
“These regions are one and cannot be separated. Any split would be like cutting off the head from the body, with Jammu as the head and Kashmir as the torso,” Dr Abdullah said during a visit in Jammu.
However, Jammu and Kashmir unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) clarified that the party does not support the separation of Jammu from Kashmir, asserting that such views do not reflect its ideology.
Addressing reporters in Srinagar, BJP state general secretary (organisation) Ashok Koul has recently said that the demand was an individual opinion and not the party’s stance. “It is not the thinking of the BJP. It is the thinking of an individual. As of today, the Bharatiya Janata Party believes that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of Bharat — as Jammu and Kashmir, not Jammu separate and Kashmir separate,” Koul had said. (KNS)