MUMBAI: Kashmir is in India because of Nehru, the BJP leaders should study the issue well before raking it up in the poll campaign, Congress leader Prithviraj Chavan has said.
Chavan, who is contesting the Karad south constituency, was reacting to the rally addressed by union home minister Amit Shah at Karad on Sunday to campaign for assembly candidates as well as for Udayanraje Bhosale, who is the BJP candidate for the Lok Sabha by-election.
"Actually Modi was to campaign for Udayanraje. But, sensing that the ground reality is different he sent the second rank leader for the campaign," Chavan said while adding that Bhosale, who had won the constituency five months back with a margin of over 1.25 lakh votes, will lose the constituency by a margin of over 2 lakh votes.
Earlier, NCP leader Sharad Pawar had proposed Chavan's name as the candidate for the Lok Sabha bypolls. However, then the NCP decided to field former bureaucrat turned politician who was governor of Sikkim for the past five years Shrinivas Patil against the descendant of King Shivaji. Chavan, who had earlier declined Pawar's offer to contest the bypoll had expressed surprise over the choice of the candidate when Patil's name was announced.
However, after Shah's rally, Chavan said that anyone might have been a candidate, Bhosale is certain to go this time. Chavan also criticized Shah for wrecking up the issue of article 370 during his campaign for Maharashtra assembly polls.
"Before wrecking up the issue of article 370 at the state election campaign, Shah should have studied Kashmir. If he does so, he will realize that Kashmir is still a part of India only because Nehru was there during its accession."