BJP has failed in Valley, make ‘K’ sole issue in LS poll: Swamy

Vibha Sharma
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, February 15

A day after the Pulwama attack when most BJP leaders avoided airing personal views and only endorsed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “perpetrators will pay a heavy price” warning, senior leader Subramanian Swamy breached the official line saying the saffron party had “failed” in Kashmir.

But, Swamy also said the BJP had the capability to reorganise itself to counter Pakistan. “The BJP has failed in Kashmir… It failed to retaliate properly. But it is capable of retooling itself to smash Pakistan,” said Swamy, underlining the situation within his party in the current circumstances.

The BJP leader said Kashmir should be the only issue in the coming Lok Sabha election. “Seek for a mandate for it,” he said. 

In a tweet later, Swamy said Pulwama happened because of the government’s 2014 order following the killing of two youths in Army firing at a car in Chattergam. “It is now clear that the massacre of CRPF personnel happened due to the government’s 2014 order not to stop any vehicle at any check-point,” he said. 

The incident had sparked widespread protests in Kashmir. The Army had tendered an apology and even persecuted the jawans behind the firing. Speaking at an election rally in Kashmir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said 

that “it was for the first time in 30 years that a government had acted against Army men responsible for killing two innocent teenagers in Budgam.”