“This election is about electing a strong government,” says PM Modi on JK’s Udhampur India TV.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday addressed a rally in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur as a star campaigner for Union Minister Jitendra Singh. Addressing the gathering, he said this election was about electing a strong government. Before his rally, authorities activated a multi-layered security system, including a ban on drone flights.

The Prime Minister said, “Modi thinks far ahead. So what has happened so far is just a trailer. I have to worry about creating a new and wonderful image of the new Jammu and -Kashmir. The time is not far when Assembly elections will be held. which will be held in Jammu and Kashmir. Jammu and Kashmir will get statehood. You will be able to share your dreams with your MP and your ministers.

“For the sake of power, they built a 370 wall in Jammu and Kashmir. With your blessings, Modi demolished the Article 370 wall. I also buried the debris of this wall in the ground. I challenge any political party in India, especially the Congress, to announce that they will bring back Article 370. This country will not even consider them,” he said.

He said: “This election is not just about electing MPs, but it is an election to form a strong government in the country. When the government is strong, it completes the job by overcoming challenges. ” He added: “I told you to trust me and I will solve the problems of 60 years. I had guaranteed respect for mothers and sisters here. I gave a guarantee that the poor would not have to worry about two meals a day.Today, thousands of families in Jammu and Kashmir are guaranteed free ration for the next 5 years.

“Modi ki guarantee yani guarantee pura hone ki guarantee. You remember how the weak Congress governments kept the Shahpurkandi dam blocked for decades. The fields of farmers in Jammu were dry and the villages were in darkness, but our “Ravi water was flowing. in Pakistan. Modi had given a guarantee to the farmers and also fulfilled it,” PM Modi said in Udhampur.

Singh is seeking re-election for the third consecutive time to Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur Lok Sabha seat in the first phase of elections.

Security tightened in Udhampur

A multi-layered security arrangement has been put in place to ensure safe and secure conduct of the gathering, they said. This includes elaborate deployments, area domination, checkpoints and vigilance in areas as well as vigil on vital installations in the region by various security agencies. Officials said security personnel have been deployed along the Jammu-Udhampur highway and at vital junctions as part of setting up additional checkpoints to monitor commuters.

Searches have been intensified at important places on the highway, they added. Udhampur District Magistrate Saloni Rai on Thursday issued an order banning the flying of any type of aeronautical device, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and drones, in the district. “Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Udhampur to address a public meeting tomorrow and various necessary arrangements are being made by the administration as per the SoP for the safe and secure conduct of the rally,” Rai said in the prescription.

“In view of the emerging security threats due to recent trends of using drones as improvised explosive devices (IEDs) by anti-national elements, it is imperative to strengthen security measures to maintain law and order,” he said. she adds. The district magistrate said that the Udhampur Senior Superintendent of Police would ensure implementation of this order prohibiting theft of any type of aviation device.

Senior Superintendent of Police and Security Shamsheer Hussain also issued an advisory asking people to arrive on time for a smooth entry before the program begins before 10 am. This is Prime Minister Modi's third visit to Jammu and Kashmir in over a month and a half. He addressed large gatherings during the inauguration of several development projects on February 20 and March 7 in the cities of Jammu and Srinagar.

Supreme Court sets deadline for Jammu and Kashmir elections

Last year in December, the top court had directed the Election Commission of India to hold elections in Jammu and Kashmir by September 30, 2024. The decision was part of the verdict on pleas challenging the suppression of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. The Supreme Court upheld the government's decision to scrap Article 370 and said steps should be taken to restore the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir at the earliest.

Four years after its revocation, Article 370 has taken center stage in the election campaign in Jammu and Kashmir, notably in the Udhampur Lok Sabha constituency where Union Minister Jitendra Singh is contesting for reelection. re-election for the third time. The seat is the subject of a triangular fight with the Congress fielding Choudhary Lal Singh and the Democratic Progressive Azad Party (DPAP), pitting three-time former MP GM Saroori against the senior BJP leader.

Polling in Udhampur Lok Sabha constituency will be held on April 19 in the first of the seven phases of the Lok Sabha elections. Jitendra Singh had retained the Udhampur Lok Sabha seat in 2019, defeating Congress candidate Vikramaditya Singh, the grandson of former Maharaja Hari Singh. , with a margin of 3,53,272 votes. Lal Singh got only 19,049 votes. In 2014, he had defeated former Union minister Ghulam Nabi Azad by a margin of 60,976 votes.

(With inputs from PTI)

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