66% decline in terrorist incidents in J&K after removal of Article 370, says Amit Shah

JAMMU: Asserting that a new era of peace has begun in Jammu and Kashmir, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday said the union territory has witnessed a 66 per cent decline in terrorist incidents and an 81 per cent drop in civilian killings since the scrapping of Article 370.

Addressing a function via videoconferencing, Shah credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership for transforming Jammu and Kashmir, which was “known for terrorism”, into a tourism hub.

Shah virtually flagged off 100 e-buses in Jammu and handed over appointment letters to Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service (JKAS) officers and compassionate appointees.

“I want to tell you that there has been a fall of 66 per cent in terrorism-related incidents. There has been a decline of 81 per cent in civilian killings and 48 per cent in killings of security forces after the scrapping of Article 370,” he told the gathering.

The Centre revoked Article 370, which accorded a special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, on August 5, 2019. The government also divided Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories — Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.

Shah said 2,654 organised stone-pelting incidents took place in Jammu and Kashmir in 2000 but no such incident took place in 2023. “As many as 132 organised shutdowns took place in 2010 but there were none in 2023. As many as 112 civilians lost their lives in stone pelting in 2010 but no civilian life was lost in stone pelting in 2023. As many as 6,235 civilians were injured during the period (2010),” he added.