NEW DELHI: India’s Lok Sabha, lower house of parliament, on Tuesday passed the Modi government’s bill to split the disputed state of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union Territories governed from Delhi.

The move set off a deep rift between senior leaders of the main opposition Congress party though its former chief Rahul Gandhi slammed the government’s move as divisive and unconstitutional.

“National integration isn’t furthered by unilaterally tearing apart J&K, imprisoning elected representatives and violating our Constitution. This nation is made by its people, not plots of land. This abuse of executive power has grave implications for our national security,” Mr Gandhi tweeted.

Party leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury asked Home Minister Amit Shah if the Shimla Agreement, Lahore Declaration and UN resolutions were now dead. The comment was reportedly disapproved of by senior leader Sonia Gandhi.

Discussing the bill Mr Shah said the state would remain the paradise that it was. A BJP MP from Ladakh spoke strongly for making his part of the state into a Union Territory, a move China has strongly opposed.

A number of Congress leaders across the country have gone against the party’s stand in parliament on amendment of the provisions of Article 370. They also supported the Centre’s move to bifurcate the State.

The Congress in parliament has strongly opposed the 370 move and the bill to bifurcate the State of Jammu and Kashmir into two Union territories.

Going against the party’s stand, senior Congress leaders Janardan Dwivedi, Jyotiraditya Scindia and Deepender Hooda voiced support to the new status of the disputed state.

Mr Scindia, considered close the Gandhi family, said he supported the move on Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh and the State’s full integration into the Union of India, adding that it was in the interest of the country.

“Would have been better if constitutional process had been followed. No questions could have been raised then. Nevertheless, this is in our country’s interest and I support this,” he wrote on Twitter. Mr Dwivedi welcomed the abrogation of the provisions of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, saying even though it came late, a historical mistake had been corrected.

In an embarrassment to the Congress, Anil Shastri, son of former prime minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, said on Twitter: “Congress must sense the mood of the people and then take a stand. The people are totally with the government on this issue. We opposed Mandal and lost UP and Bihar and should not risk now of losing India.”

Mr Hooda, with stakes in Haryana, contended that the abrogation of the provisions of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir “is in the interest of national integrity”.

Mumbai Congress chief Milind Deora, whose election campaign was backed by businessman Mukesh Ambani, took an ambivalent view, saying it was “very unfortunate” that Article 370 was being converted into a “liberal vs conservative debate.”

“Parties should put aside ideological fixations & debate what’s best for India’s sovereignty and federalism, peace in J&K, jobs for Kashmiri youth and justice for Kashmiri Pandits,” he said in a tweet.

“Abolishing Article 370 of the Indian Constitution could well be dubbed Modi Sarkar 2.0’s demonetisation moment.

“For the sake of peace and development in Jammu & Kashmir, I hope this decision plays out more favourably than demonetisation did,” Mr Deora noted.

Mr Dwivedi said it was a matter of national satisfaction that a “mistake” made at the time of Independence was corrected.

He added that after Independence, many freedom fighters did not want Article 370 to remain in place and cited the example of Ram Manohar Lohia, under whom he had his political training and who was against Article 370.

“This is a matter of satisfaction for the nation. This historical mistake that happened at the time of Independence has been rectified today, even though late, and is welcomed,” Mr Dwivedi told Press Trust of India, while clarifying that his opinion was personal and he was not putting forward his party’s view.

Congress’s chief whip in the Rajya Sabha Bhubaneshwar Kalita quit his membership in the Upper House of Parliament over the issue after the party asked him to issue a whip to all members for opposing the bill.

Congress MLA from Rae Bareli Aditi Singh also said on Twitter, “United we stand! Jai Hind. #Article370.”

Reminded that she was a Congress leader, Ms Singh replied back, saying, “Main ek Hindustani hoon (I am an Indian).”

Ms Singh’s Assembly segment - Rae Bareli Sadar — is a part of UPA chairperson and former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi’s Lok Sabha constituency.

The party’s brain trust, the Congress Working Committee, is expected to meet urgently to clarify its stand.

Senior leaders Kapil Sibal, Ghulam Nabi Azad and P. Chidambaram had spoken strongly against the measures to change the status of Jammu and Kashmir on Monday, which they said were unconstitutional.

Published in Dawn, August 7th, 2019