Voices From Jammu & Kashmir Must Be Heard, Says Manmohan Singh In First Remark On Article 370

Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also said India is passing through a "deep crisis" and it needs cooperation of like-minded people.

Manmohan Singh (Source: PTI)

New Delhi: In his first reaction to the government’s move of scrapping Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that the decision is not to the liking of many people in the country and voices of Kashmir residents must be heard for the idea of India to prevail. He also said India is passing through a "deep crisis" and it needs cooperation of like-minded people. "Its outcome is not to the liking of many people of our country. It is important that the voice of all these people be heard. It is only by raising our voice that we can ensure that in the long run, the idea of India, which is very sacred to us, will prevail," Singh told reporters here. He made his first remarks on the revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir after paying homage to his cabinet colleague and former Congressman S Jaipal Reddy, who died in Hyderabad in July. Senior Congress leaders like P Chidambaram, Mani Shankar Aiyar and  Digvijay Singh have come forward to critics the government’s move. Chidambaram has alleged that the BJP scrapped the special status of Jammu and Kashmir as the region is "dominated" by Muslims, a remark condemned by the ruling party on Monday as "provocative and irresponsible". The former union home and finance minister also alleged that the BJP-led NDA government would not have taken the bold decision had Jammu and Kashmir been a "Hindu-dominated" state. While, Mani Shankar Aiyar likened the situation to that of Palestine, Digvijay Singh said that the Centre needs to act "thoughtfully" or else "Kashmir will slip out of our hands".