Modification of Article 370 will 'vitiate' progress made in J&K: Congress' Ripun Bora

Speaking to ETV Bharat, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ripun Bora condemned the Bharatiya Janta Party-led central government's decision to put an end to Jammu and Kashmir's special status and split it into two Union territories. He said that the Centre should have taken the people of the Valley into confidence before taking the step.

Assam/Jammu and Kashmir:With the Bharatiya Janta Party-led central government claiming that its decision to put an end to Jammu and Kashmir's special status and split it into two Union territories will help bring development in the Valley, Congress' Assam president Ripun Bora condemned the action and said that it would "vitiate" the progress made so far in J&K.

'Speaking to ETV Bharat, Assam Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ripun Bora said, "this (modification of Article 370) is not good for the country, this will vitiate the progress made so far more. This will turn the situation from bad to worse."

"They could have held a discussion with all the stakeholders. They should have taken them into confidence. A broad national concensus should have been arrived at. If they would've followed the proper procedure before taking this action, it would've been fine," added Bora.

Continuing his tirade against the central government, Bora said, "just because they have the required numbers in the Parliament...this is an autocratic decision."

Earlier, Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee chief Ghulam Ahmad Mir and spokesperson Ravinder Sharma being put under "house arrest" while they were addressing a press conference.

Scores of politicians were arrested in Jammu and Kashmir last week as the government sought to avoid any protests in the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

After 13 days of lockdown in the Valley, more than 50,000 landline phones were reportedly made operational on Saturday after services in 17 telephone exchanges were restored.