Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday said the collective opinion of the Congress party was her only opinion on the Centre's move of abrogating Article 370.
This is Priyanka Gandhi's first reaction on the redistribution of Jammu and Kashmir. She hadn't even taken to Twitter to pen her thoughts on the historical move.
"The collective opinion of the Congress party is my ONLY opinion on the matter," Priyanka told India TV.
The issue has, moreover, left the Congress completely divided. Several Congress leaders have openly backed the government's move.
"There are rules to be followed when such things are done, which were not followed in this case," she added, while briefly speaking with reporters during her visit to meet the victims of the Sonebhadra carnage.
The party's chief whip in Rajya Sabha Bhubaneswar Kalita even resigned from the party and his House membership to protest the Congress's stand on the issue.
Jyotiraditya Scindia, who was at the helm of the party's campaign in western Uttar Pradesh along with Priyanka in the eastern part, has also supported the Modi government on the revocation of Article 370 that had until now bestowed special status on Jammu and Kashmir.
Reactions, opinions and dissensions on the abrogation of Article 370 have become a cause of concern for the party as prominent leaders broke party line to back the government on its Kashmir move.
Apart from Jyotiraditya Scindia, Karan Singh, Milind Deora, RPN Singh and a few others have lent their support to the Centre's move.
The Parliament had earlier this week given its nod to the abrogation of Article 370 and the legislation for bifurcating the state into two union territories.
Meanwhile, Priyanka Gandhi reached Umbha village in UP's Sonebhadra district, on Tuesday, to meet the family members of the victims who were killed in the July 17 massacre over a land dispute. She arrived in Varanasi this morning by air and then travelled by road to Umbha village.
Priyanka spent over an hour talking to the local people. She sought information about the lack of development in the region and assured them that the Congress would always stand by them. She also met the persons injured in the incident.
Security had been beefed up in the area in view of the Congress leader's visit.
Ten people were killed and two dozen injured when armed men, led by the village head had clashed with members of the local Gond tribe in an attempt to take possession of a disputed plot of land.
Priyanka had tried to reach the village on July 19 to meet the victims but was denied permission by the local authorities since Section 144 was clamped in the area.
Earlier in the day, Priyanka stopped her car to meet a group of women who were standing by the roadside in Narayanpur village. Priyanka defied security concerns and her security had a hard time in maintaining order as she went into the crowd.
Narayanpura was the same village where she sat on a dharna on July 19 when police stopped her from going to meet the affected villagers.
(with inputs from agencies)
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