Article 370 has caused more harm to Kashmir than good; need to scrap it: Dy CM Nirmal Singh

Asserting that Article 370 has caused harm to Jammu and Kashmir, Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh on Sunday called for abrogation of the provision.

“The Article 370 has done more harm than anything,” Singh told ANI.

Singh further said, “The BJP had set 44 plus target in last state assembly elections which the party could not achieve and got only 25 seats. If we would have got 44 plus, things would have been different,” Singh added.

Singh’s statement came a day after Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat called for amendments in the Indian Constitution for assimilation of Jammu and Kashmir into India and the Union.

Meanwhile, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has demanded necessary constitutional amendments for the people of Jammu and Kashmir to be completely assimilated with the rest of the country and batted for the rights of Hindu refugees in the state.

The RSS and the BJP have long demanded abrogation of the Article 370, which grants special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

The Supreme Court is also hearing a plea demanding repeal of Article 35A, which allows the state legislature to define "permanent residents"