New Delhi: The BJP is planning to release a book, Mission Accomplished, “chronicling the struggles and sacrifice of BJP leaders in J&K from 1949 right up until 2019”, apart from a host of events to mark the first anniversary of Jammu and Kashmir losing its special status.
The Modi government had on 5 August last year scrapped Article 370 and abolished Article 35A, which were special provisions for J&K in the Constitution, and bifurcated the erstwhile state into two union territories.
The BJP now plans to launch a ‘Ek Bharat, Ek Atma Bharat (One India)’ campaign in J&K from 5 August to “highlight the importance of the decision”. The party’s state unit has also decided to launch 15-day-long celebrations.
According to a BJP circular, the party will launch a nationwide campaign between 28 July to 3 August, which will involve state units holding e-rallies and video conferences. The party wants to use the opportunity to also celebrate the scrapping of triple talaq for Muslim women and has directed each state unit to get hold of Muslim women intellectuals.
BJP President J.P. Nadda had Saturday met the party’s Jammu and Kashmir chief Ravinder Raina, Union Minister Jitendra Singh and other office-bearers of the J&K unit to finalise the preparations.
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‘Flag hosting, facilitation of party martyrs’
The celebrations will begin on 5 August with the hosting of the Tricolour at every panchayat in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh. The national anthem will be sung between 9 am and 11 am and in the evening, earthen lamps will be lit at every home.
“The idea is to tell the people that it is a special day of integration. We have defeated those forces who want to divide Jammu and Kashmir,” BJP general secretary, J&K unit, Sunil Sharma said.
The BJP will also observe martyrdom day and pay homage to its party leaders killed in the state. They include Wasim Bari, the BJP leader gunned down in Bandipora on 8 July and the party’s district vice-president of Anantnag Gul Mohammad Mir who was shot dead by militants in May.
BJP leaders will also meet family members of Praja Parishad leaders who were jailed in the 1950s. The Praja Parishad was formed after Independence by RSS members who had campaigned for ‘full integration’ back then. Their campaign had got the backing of Syama Prasad Mookerjee, the founder of the Jan Sangh, the precursor to the BJP.
“We will meet family members of those who have sacrificed their lives for the larger cause and will salute their sacrifice. There are several Praja Parishad leaders who sacrificed their lives during this struggle,” Sharma said.
“We will hand over a flag, a book and a calendar to family members during this felicitation programme. National leaders will be present during his celebration. Local BJP leaders have been told to mobilise at least 50 people in every district during this campaign.”
Ashok Kaul, the BJP organising general secretary, said the party will also release the book Mission Accomplished, which will chronicle the lives of 50 BJP leaders who sacrificed their lives for the “integration of Jammu and Kashmir”.
Some of them include Prem Nath Dogra, Hari Wazir, Chaman Lal Gupta who was minister in the Vajpayee cabinet. Kaul said several Praja Parishad leaders have also been honoured in the book.
“Our nationalist leaders’ struggles should reach people at the bottom. People should know how our leaders fought for 70 years for this cause, which was fulfilled by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah,” Kaul said. “Right now, people only know about militancy in Jammu and Kashmir. They know about the NC and PDP but not the BJP’s struggles and sacrifices. This book will help them in knowing the sacrifices of our nationalist leaders.”
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It is worth reiterating the significance of 5th August in Kashmir’s history and indeed India’s political history. It was in 1938 that the Muslim Conference (which later became the National Conference) headed by Sheikh Abdullah gave the call for observing 5th August 1938 as Responsible Government day. This was a revolutionary step for till then the National Conference was chiefly agitating for more jobs and other facilities for Muslims changed tack and started agitating for the change from feudal rule by a Hindu Maharajah to a responsible government in which all people of the State irrespective of caste,creed or religion would be stake holders. Some Hindus and Sikhs including Jia Lal Kilam, Kashyap Bandhu and Sardar Budh Singh supported this demand and took part in Drafting the National Demands Document.This led to a National Demands agitation which was supported by All India States People Conference led by Jawaharlal Nehru. The National Demands document was adopted first by the people of Rajkot and then by people of many other Princely States kick starting a struggle for responsible government in all Princely States.
The movement against feudal rule and the anger against feudal rulers was according to Ian Copland used by Patel and Menon to persuade the rulers of Princely States ruled by Hindu Rulers to submit to the rule of a secular Congress. BJP considers the 5th August Responsible Government Day celebrated on 5th August 1938 in Kashmir as responsible for the ultimate replacement of Hindu Rule by a secular rule and hence its choice of 5th August for fragmenting and destroying the Jammu and Kashmir State. For BJP the end of Hindu rule in Princely States and their integration into a secular India was a blow to Hindutva and so is remembered as a black day.
Great work. Believe it or not RSS still is the only org that doesn’t consider its opposition as Untouchable