Addressing a public rally in Udhampur, BJP senior leader  PM Modi said, “Modi is guaranteeing the creation of developed Jammu and Kashmir for developed India. But Congress, National Conference, and PDP want to take Jammu and Kashmir back to those old days. No one has caused as much damage to Jammu and Kashmir as these family-run parties have. The meaning of these political parties is, of the family, by the family, for the family.”

The Prime Minister attacked the Congress for keeping the Shahpurkandi Dam stalled for decades and alleged that the latter gave the Ravi water to Pakistan by keeping the fields of the farmers of Jammu dry.

“Modi ki guarantee yani guarantee pura hone ki guarantee. You remember how the weak governments of Congress kept the Shahpurkandi Dam stalled for decades. The fields of the farmers of Jammu were dry and the villages were in darkness, but our water of Ravi was going to Pakistan. Modi had given a guarantee to the farmers and has fulfilled it also,” he said.

Recalling his visit to Udhampur in 2014, PM Modi said, “In 2014, I had come back after visiting Mata Vaishno Devi and on this very ground, I had guaranteed you that I will free you from whatever several generations of Jammu and Kashmir have suffered. Today, with your blessings, Modi has fulfilled that guarantee.”

The BJP has fielded Union Minister Jitendra Singh from Udhampur who has been representing the constituency since 2014. Singh had defeated former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad from Udhampur in 2014.

The Congress has fielded Choudhary Lal Singh from Udhampur. The Congress took Lal Singh back into its fold six years after he was forced to resign following his participation in a rally held in support of the Kathua rape accused, in which a child was raped. The Peoples Democratic Party, partner in the INDIA bloc, has extended its support to Lal Singh.

Udhampur will vote in the first phase on April 19. The BJP had won three out of six seats in Jammu and Kashmir in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls. The National Conference won the remaining three seats.

(ANI)