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Salman Khurshid hailed the Modi government’s Article 370 abrogation move and said that it brought prosperity to Kashmir.
Congress leader Salman Khurshid hails Article 370 abrogation in Indonesia (PTI Image)
Yet another senior Congress leader, who is a part of the delegations sent abroad to expose Pakistan on terrorism, has deviated from the party line – this time, it’s Salman Khurshid, who hailed the abrogation of Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir.
Lauding the Modi government’s landmark move in August 2019 to permanently scrap the article of the Constitution that gave a special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, Khurshid said that Kashmir has witnessed prosperity after the step.
His remarks came while addressing the Indonesian think Tanks and Academia on Thursday. Khurshid is a part of the all-party delegation led by JD(U) MP Sanjay Jha.
Salman Khurshid Lauds Article 370 Abrogation
Describing Article 370 as a “major problem” that was finally put to an end in 2019, Khurshid said that there is a government in the region today, which was elected with the participation of over 60% of voters.
“Kashmir had a major problem for a long time. Much of that was reflected in the thinking of the government in an article called 370 of the Constitution, which somehow gave the impression that it was separate from the rest of the country. But Article 370 was abrogated, and it was finally put to an end,” news agency ANI quoted Khurshid as saying.
#WATCH | Jakarta, Indonesia | “Kashmir had a major problem for a long time. Much of that was reflected in the thinking of the government in an article called 370 of the Constitution, which somehow gave an impression that it was separate from the rest of the country. But Article… pic.twitter.com/wXcdkfWPlR— ANI (@ANI) May 29, 2025
“Subsequently, there was an election with 65% participation in the election. There’s an elected government in Kashmir today, and therefore, for people to want to undo everything that has happened, the prosperity that has come to Kashmir,” he added.
Notably, Khurshid is the latest Congress leader to deviate from the party line. Earlier, senior Congress leaders Shashi Tharoor and Manish Tewari were among the party MPs who spoke in a different tune from their party. While Tharoor exposed Pakistan during his delegation’s visits to Guyana and Panama, Tewari made it amply clear at a press conference that the US did not mediate between India and Pakistan’s ceasefire. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other leaders have been questioning the government over Donald Trump’s repeated claims of mediating a ceasefire between the two countries using trade as a tool — a charge that the government has denied.
Khurshid Says Indonesia Far More Supportive Than Expected
The Congress leader said that Indonesia was far more supportive than they expected.
“They took a lot of interest and reiterated their support for India’s position… The narrative pushed by the Chief of Army Staff in Pakistan, now Field Marshal, was completely negated and rejected in our conversations,” he said.
“The Indian Parliament has a long-standing unanimous resolution that the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir must be vacated and given back to India… The Indian government has clearly stated that talks can happen only when Pakistan’s commitment to peace is clear, and its support to terrorism is cogently shown to have stopped. This includes conversing about the Indus water treaty being put in abeyance,” he added.
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