Prime Minister Narendra Modi applauded the voting figures of Day One of the assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, saying it showed a huge confidence in democracy. The young people feel their vote can bring change, which is the first step towards their empowerment. He blamed the dynastic politics of the two largest parties of Kashmir Valley - the National Conference and the Peoples Democratic Party - as well as the Congress, for the decades of terror and the "injustices" done to minorities, including Kashmiri Pandits and Sikhs, in the Valley.
At the rally in support of BJP candidates at Srinagar's Sher-e-Kashmir Stadium, PM Modi said the BJP will fulfil its promise of restoration of Jammu and Kashmir's statehood.
"We have promised in Parliament that we will restore J&K's statehood. The BJP will fulfil this commitment," he said.
His other promises included Rs 10,000 annual assistance to farmers, Rs 18,000 annual assistance to the woman head of every family, and enhancing the health insurance from the existing Rs 5 lakh to Rs 7 lakh.
The Congress, National Conference and the PDP, PM Modi said, have "trampled" on democracy and 'Kashmiryat' for their own benefits.
In the 1980s, they treated Jammu and Kashmir's politics as their "fiefdom".
"They did not want anyone except their families to come forward, else why did they stop the Panchayat, DDC and BDC elections? The parties knew it would bring new faces who would challenge their family rule,'' he said.
The result, he said, was that "youth kept losing faith in democracy."
The parties, he said, were also happy to keep democracy hobbled in the Valley. But the situation, he said, has vastly changed over the last five years.
"Remember the conditions in which elections were held earlier. The campaigns would stop by 6 pm. Door-to-door campaigns were impossible," he said.
"Today, the campaign happens late in the night. Now, the people are celebrating democracy. Youth have found confidence in democracy again, they feel their vote, their democratic right, can bring change. This hope is the first step towards empowerment," he added.
The three parties, he added, have also "ruined" the Kashmiri Pandits and "injustices have been done to Sikhs".
"They have been partners in all the excesses committed on them," he said.
"The youths of my Jammu and Kashmir are no more helpless. They are becoming empowered under the Modi government... I can see today Kashmiri brothers are saying 'khushaamdeed' (welcome) PM, I also thank them from the bottom of my heart," he added.