Amit Shah slams Gupkar Declaration; Mehbooba, Omar hit back
In a series of tweets on Tuesday, Home Minister Amit Shah slammed the People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD), saying the "Gupkar Gang" has gone global and it wants foreign forces to meddle in Jammu and Kashmir's matters. As he claimed the alliance will sink if the leaders don't understand the nation's mood, former J&K Chief Ministers Mehbooba Mufti and Omar Abdullah hit back.
Background: Political adversaries formed PAGD for Article 370's restoration
The PAGD wants Article 370, which granted a special status to J&K till August 2019, restored. For this common agenda, political adversaries like NC, PDP, and Jammu and Kashmir People's Conference have ditched their bitterness. The alliance, however, has been dismissed by BJP, under whose governance several mainstream politicians were detained. The Centre had defended their detention, saying they would have fanned violence.
Gupkar Gang is going global, claimed Shah
Now, attacking some of the most celebrated politicians of J&K, Shah tweeted, "The Gupkar Gang is going global! They want foreign forces to intervene in Jammu and Kashmir." He also said the Gupkar Gang, a term used by right-wing leaders to mock the alliance, insulted the tricolor. "Do Sonia Ji and Rahul Ji support such moves of the Gupkar Gang?" he asked.
Congress should clarify its stand, demanded Shah
Congress, Gupkar Gang want terror and turmoil to return: Shah
In another tweet, he said Congress and Gupkar Gang are working toward bringing terror and turmoil back to J&K. "They want to take away rights of Dalits, women and tribals that we have ensured by removing Article 370. This is why they're being rejected by the people everywhere," he tweeted. He also claimed Indians will reject the unholy 'global gathbandhan.'
Shah predicted the alliance will not take off
Old habits die hard: Mufti was quick to slam Shah
Reacting to Shah's tweets, Mufti said BJP has not ditched its old habits. "Earlier BJPs narrative was that the tukde tukde gang threatened India's sovereignty & they are now using 'Gupkar Gang' euphemism to project us as anti-nationals, (sic)" she said, adding that the saffron party repeatedly violates the Constitution. She asked how BJP forming alliances is not unholy, but theirs is.
She also claimed BJP's tactics were becoming "too predictable"
"BJP's stale tactic of dividing India by projecting themselves as saviors & political opponents as internal & imagined enemies is far too predictable now. Love jihad, tukde tukde & now Gupkar Gang dominates the political discourse instead of rising unemployment & inflation, (sic)" she added.
Abdullah claimed Shah was hoping they would boycott elections
Separately, Abdullah was blunter in his attack. He said Shah's "frustration" was understandable as he must have been briefed that the alliance would boycott the elections. "This would have allowed the BJP & newly formed King's party a free run in J&K. We didn't oblige them, (sic)" he tweeted. Abdullah also said J&K leaders were being labeled as anti-nationals for following the democratic process.
