NEW DELHI: The BJP has kicked off a major outreach drive in poll-bound Jammu and Kashmir involving close to 70 Union ministers. The Centre’s outreach to J&K is principally aimed to boost the confidence-building measures, particularly to reassure political workers at the grassroots level of unflinching support of the government, said a senior BJP functionary.
He added that efforts will be made to motivate Kashmiri Pandits to resettle in the Valley according to the compensations given to them previously. As many as 70 Union ministers will visit the Valley over the next nine weeks to carry forward the party’s outreach. They have been instructed to submit reports of their visists to the Prime Minister and the Union Home Minister Affairs, which will form the basis for further measures from the Centre, said a senior official in the government.
The party noted that there has been a decrease in militant activities and linked it with satisfaction in the government and the BJP. “The BJP, in the recent years, has built a good base of political assets in the Valley. The Centre’s backing of the local body representatives has been a significant political investment, with signs visible of the emergence of alternative leadership in the UT,” said a BJP worker.