BJP says no softening on Article 370 but backs Modi on debate; Cong points out 'doublespeak'

New Delhi: Narendra Modi's remarks on Article 370 of the Constitution triggered a debate on Monday with Congress and parties in Jammu and Kashmir rejecting any review of the provision, while BJP dismissed any suggestions that it has softened its stand on the issue.

His other remarks that women of Jammu and Kashmir are discriminated when they lose their rights of inheritance if they marry outside the state was also rebutted by mainstream parties in the state.

BJP leaders Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj said it would be incorrect to interpret Modi's demand for a debate as a 'softening' of the party's stand on Article 370.

The Gujarat chief minister, who in his speech at the Jammu rally on Sunday sought a debate on Article 370 whether it has been beneficial to the state or not, and came under attack from mainstream parties and separatists in Jammu and Kashmir.

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On Monday, the BJP leader said it should be a 'rational' debate.

"We need rational & focused debate not only on 370 but other issues relating to J&K, including suffering of sections of J&K society," Modi said on Twitter.

Seeking to take credit for raising the issue, he said, "Glad that after my call for a debate on Article 370, it is being widely debated among people & across TV, social media."

Dismissing Modi's call for a debate on Article 370, Congress advised him to discuss the issue first with Sangh Parivar, saying there is already 'clarity' in the ruling party about it.

Party General Secretary Digvijaya Singh also said that he 'does not take Modi's statement very seriously' as he 'keeps changing' it from place to place.

"As far as my party is concerned, there in clarity on the issue (of Article 370 giving special status to Jammu and Kashmir). If Modi wants to debate, he should debate it within BJP and the Sangh. We have no objection if Modi, BJP and the Sangh debate it within them. We have no objection if they want a public debate...," Singh said.

"The manner they speak about Article 370 and Article 371 makes me conclude that they neither read the Constitution of India nor they have cared about detail.... They (Modi's remark) completely reveal their (BJP's) doublespeak. 10 years ago, five years ago, one year ago you would hear BJP talking about abrogating Article 370. Now they are talking about debate on Article 370," Tewari had said on Sunday.

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Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar also slammed BJP for raking up the issue of Article 370 and termed it as part of an effort to again 'draw a line of division'.

"I am a supporter of Article 370 for state of Jammu and Kashmir... There is neither a need for debate on the subject nor any need for changing it," he said.

Seeking to allay insinuations that BJP was softening its stand on the issue, Jaitley, said, "It would be incorrect for anyone to interpret BJP's challenge for a debate on this issue as a softening of stand on Article 370."

Swaraj said Shyama Prasad Mukherjee and Modi have not said different things about Article 370 and the BJP's prime ministerial candidate only asked what have been its benefits.

"This is not being soft on the issue. Modi questioned whether there has been any gain from Article 370 and that this issue should be debated," she said.

Jaitley also attacked Omar and his party, besides PDP, for coming in support of a Bill seeking to take away the rights of women who married outside Kashmir and for taking an 'anti- daughter' position in Jammu & Kashmir while opposing the 2002 High Court judgment.

"Can the Chief Minister ignore a dubious track record of his Party on this issue and indulge in discourteous tweets on the subject?" he asked.

The mainstream parties, including National Conference, PDP and CPI-M, have attacked Modi for raking up 'divisive' issues and said that Article 370 cannot be amended even by the Constitution because of its 'permanent' nature.

Criticising Modi, Omar Abdullah said Article 370 and state subject laws were completely different and attacked Modi for creating confusion between the two.

"My problem is not the misinformation about this law. It will take some time to percolate across the country. My problem is with people like Narendra Modi who knowingly or unknowingly seek to sort of join Article 370 without State subject laws...," he said.

"Not so long ago when he came to Madhopur, the border between Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab, he called for a full revocation of Article 370. What he says in J and K and what he says in the rest of country, we will have to see. I will wait and see what the BJP puts in its election manifesto.

"Article 370 determines the relation between the Centre and State. It is the bridge that joins Jammu and Kashmir with rest of the country. Our state subject laws are our own. The state subject law as it exists today is not even a post-independence product. It is a pre-Independence product," Omar said.

PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed said that Modi's comments can create 'fissures' within the state besides increasing trust deficit between the state and rest of the country.

"If Modi aspires for the top job of a country as diverse as India he will have to rise above prejudices, perceptions, propaganda and work for uniting people rather than dividing them," he said.

Hardline Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani also attacked Modi terming him as a "killer of humanity" and a "blot" on democracy and secularism.

Awami Mutahida Mahaz (AMM), an amalgam of some mainstream political parties in Jammu and Kashmir, termed the remarks on Article 370 as "unwarranted and unacceptable".

"We demand a concrete decision be taken to restore the eroded provisions of this article of faith to its original status in the constitution," AMM convenor and state secretary of CPI(M) M.Y. Tarigami said.