PM Modi To Visit J&K On April 24, Likely To Interact With Kashmiri Pandits: BJP Leader

ABP News was the first to report on March 16, 2022, that PM Modi would be in the Union Territory on April 24 on the occasion of Panchayati Raj Day.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi (PTI file)

New Delhi: Confirming Narendra Modi's visit to Jammu and Kashmir later this month, a BJP leader on Monday said the Prime Minister would address a conference of local body representatives in Samba on National Panchayati Raj Day.

ABP News was the first to report on March 16, 2022, that PM Modi would be in the Union Territory on April 24 on the occasion of Panchayati Raj Day.

This will be his first visit to Jammu and Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370, a senior BJP functionary said on Monday.

READ | PM Modi's First Visit To J&K Since Abrogation Of Article 370 On April 24: Sources

National Panchayati Raj Day is observed on April 24 every year and it provides an opportunity for leaders and others to directly interact with the representatives of the panchayats or village heads across the country.

Panchayat elections were last held in Jammu and Kashmir in 2018. Recently, the killing of three sarpanches by militants in J&K has brought back the spotlight on security of panchs and sarpanchs.

Jammu and Kashmir BJP General Secretary (Organisation) Ashok Kaul said efforts were also being made for a meeting between PM Modi and representatives of the Kashmiri Pandit community.

The meeting will provide Kashmiri Pandits a platform to raise their concerns with him.

The government had revoked Jammu and Kashmir's special status under Article 370 and bifurcated it into Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh in August 2019.

Article 370, combined with Article 35A, accorded Jammu and Kashmir special status under the Constitution. It allowed the erstwhile state to have a separate Constitution, flag and a separate penal code among other legal distinctions.

Last year, PM Narendra Modi had said that since the abrogation of Article 370, there had been unprecedented peace and progress in Jammu and Kashmir.

Home Minister Amit Shah, last week, said that assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir would be held immediately after the delimitation exercise and after consultation with political parties.

 "We have no interest in keeping Jammu and Kashmir under President's Rule," Amit Shah said in Parliament.