A day after Union Home Minister Amit Shah blamed former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru for “historic blunders” in Kashmir, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday hit back saying that the BJP leader is “unaware of history and keeps rewriting it.”

“This is all about distraction, the basic issue is of caste census and participation, in whose hands is the money of the country going. They (BJP) don’t want to discuss this issue, they are afraid of it and run away from it,” Rahul Gandhi told reporters outside the Parliament.

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Speaking in Rajya Sabha, Amit Shah on Monday attributed “two historic blunders” to Nehru – declaring a ceasefire during the war with Pakistan and involving the United Nations in the Kashmir issue. He argued that had there been no untimely ceasefire, Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) would not exist today.

“People say that if not for Nehru, there would have been no Kashmir. People who know history, I want to ask them, Hyderabad faced a bigger problem, did Nehru go there? Did Nehru go to Lakshadweep, Junagarh, or Jodhpur? He only used to go to Kashmir, and even there he left the job unfinished,” Amit Shah stated.

Rahul Gandhi dismissed Shah’s remarks, stating, “Pandit Nehru gave his life for India, he was in jail for years. Amit Shah is unaware of history. I cannot expect him to know history; he has the habit of rewriting it.”

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The Home Minister, who announced the revocation of Article 370 in 2019, asserted that the government’s move has positively impacted the lives of people in Jammu and Kashmir. He argued that Article 370 had fueled separatism in the region, stating the court’s judgment, which deemed the Article temporary and intended solely to facilitate Jammu and Kashmir’s integration into India.

Congress MP Manish Tewari countered Shah’s remarks, terming them “absolutely erroneous.” He attributed the ceasefire during the war with Pakistan to the advice of General Roy Bucher, the then commander-in-chief of the Indian Army, describing it as an inevitable decision.

According to Shah, the government’s move to mainstream Jammu and Kashmir has resulted in improved conditions for the people.

(With inputs from PTI)