Termed as historic, the Parliament has passed the Jammu and Kashmir (reorganisation) Bill with the Lok Sabha also giving the nod on Tuesday. The bill was passed in the Lower House with 370 votes favouring the bill and 70 voting against it.
The Bill has already been passed in the Rajya Sabha and now only the presidential nod is awaited.
Soon after the Bill was passed in the Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted that it as a momentous occasion in the history of Parliament. The people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh will be proud that the members overcame the differences and the widespread support was quite evident from the division of votes (370: 70 in Lok Sabha and 125: 61 in Rajya Sabha).
Further, he said that the Bill would ensure empowerment and integrity of the region. Praising Home Minister Amit Shah, the Prime Minister said that Shah had been working continuously working for ensuring better life for the people in the region and passage of the bill showed his clear vision.
He said that the passage of the Bill was a great tribute to Iron man of India Sardar Patel, who was instrumental in the integration of India, Dr B R Ambedkar and Dr S P Mukherjee.
In his tweet, Modi also saluted the people of Jammu and Kashmir for their resilience. He alleged that vested interest people for many years had never thought of welfare of the people but only entered into emotional blackmailing.
Stressing that scrapping Article 370 was not a historical blunder, Home Minister Amit Shah said that it was “rectifying a historical blunder”. Replying to the debate in Lok Sabha on the bill, he said Article 370 had created doubts over the state’s relation with India. He also said that when normalcy returned in the region, the government would then think of restoring full state hood. He also stressed that India would continue its claim over Pakistan occupied Kashnmir.
