Jammu: Senior Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader M Y Tarigami on Thursday slammed the BJP-led Central government for making "big claims" on development works in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), charging that people were not even getting basic amenities.
The Centre should produce a record of the development it has carried out in Jammu and Kashmir since abrogation of Article 370, he demanded.
"At a time when the Bharatiya Janata Party government at the Centre is making big claims of development, people in Kashmir are hankering for basic amenities including LPG, ration and other essential commodities. Even in rural areas of Jammu the situation is no different," he said in a statement.
Tarigami said snow has not been cleared from roads in Kashmir and there is a crisis of drinking water.
"These are the ground realities which can't be brushed aside. The reality is that the only thing achieved by this BJP government so far is highly divisive and discriminatory measures like CAA, NRC and NPR which have created a lot of uncertainty in the country", he charged.
He said the Supreme Court may have declared the Internet blackout impermissible, but the J&K administration seems to have found a way to "circumvent" the verdict and retain most restrictions in the Valley.
Tarigami charged that the J-K administration's answer in response to the apex court's order is a mere eyewash.
Not a single minister visited Kashmir when heavy snowfall in early November destroyed the apple crop and also caused massive damage to apple trees as well, he said.
He said in Jammu farmers suffered losses due to heavy rains and the Centre didn't even bother to send a junior minister for assessment of the losses.
"Even till now the assessment of losses to apple and saffron industry and losses to farming community in Jammu has not been done properly", he alleged.
Lashing out at the Centre, he said a little over five months have passed since the Central government "arbitrarily abrogated Article 370 claiming that Articles 35A and 370 hinder development in J-K".
"Now let them produce a record on how much development has happened since then? Where is the investment and job opportunities which the BJP has been claiming will come after the revocation of J-K's special status?", he added.
Forget about creating new employment opportunities, there is an apprehension among people that now even class IV posts in J-K will be filled at the all-India level, he said.
Tarigami said the national highway connecting Kashmir with rest of the country has remained closed for more days than it is open which has created scarcity of essential commodities in the Valley.
"The BJP, which is in power for the last almost six years, has not been able to repair a patch from Ramban to Ramsu on the national highway. Students, patients, businessmen and others, who have to travel outside Kashmir, are facing the worst time", he added.
