Amit Shah Highlights Nehru's 'Two PoK Blunders,' Labels the 'Biggest' One'

Union Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday blamed the security challenges faced by Jammu and Kashmir over the decades to former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Shah, speaking in the Lok Sabha regarding the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, 2023, and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2023, stated that two significant mistakes by Nehru led to these issues.

"Responsibly, I declare that Kashmir bore the brunt of two errors made during PM Jawaharlal Nehru's tenure. The primary mistake was announcing a ceasefire when our forces were on the verge of victory, resulting in the creation of PoK. If the ceasefire had been delayed by merely three days, PoK would have remained a part of India," Shah explained, despite strong objections from opposition MPs.

He pointed out the second blunder was involving the United Nations in the Kashmir matter.

"Another mistake was taking our issue to the UN," he added.

Shah also held Congress accountable for the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits, suggesting that the incident could have been avoided if not for vote bank politics.

The Lok Sabha approved the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, which aims to designate two members from the Kashmiri migrant community and one representing displaced individuals from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to the legislative assembly. The second bill was also passed.

Shah emphasized that these bills aimed to rectify the historical injustices suffered by those deprived of their rights for the past 70 years.

BJP leader Giriraj Singh echoed Amit Shah's sentiments, affirming, "Amit Shah rightly attributes the loss of PoK to Jawaharlal Nehru. He withdrew the forces and internationalized the Kashmir issue."

Jawaharlal Nehru served as India's first Prime Minister, a close confidant of Mahatma Gandhi, and a prominent leader in the freedom struggle. He was the father of former PM Indira Gandhi and the late grandmother of Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.