Article 370 doesn't link Kashmir with India: Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday made it clear that it was wrong to say that Article 370 of the Constitution linked Jammu and Kashmir with India.

"Opposition leaders are saying that Article 370 brought Jammu and Kashmir to India. But the fact is that the Maharaja Hari Singh signed on October 27, 1947 (the Instrument of Accession) while Article 370 came into existence in 1949.

"So this is wrong to say that Article 370 brought Jammu and Kashmir with India," the Minister told the Rajya Sabha in response to Congress leader and former Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad who condemned the government decision to axe Article 370.

Leader of Opposition Azad said: "By revoking Article 370 that accords special status to Jammu and Kashmir, the BJP government has murdered the Constitution of India.

"We stand by the Constitution of India... We are willing to give up our lives for the Constitution, but we condemn any act against the Constitution."

He underlined that it was the historic Article 370 which linked Jammu and Kashmir to India.

His remarks came after Shah moved a resolution in the Rajya Sabha scrapping Article 370 will not be applicable to Jammu and Kashmir any more.

Shah said Article 370 was used as "vote bank politics" and the earlier governments lacked the political will to revoke it.

"But the Modi government has the political will and we are not bothered about vote bank politics."

He asked the opposition members to have a debate on the resolution and said there should not be a delay "even one second" in revoking Article 370.