Srinagar, Feb 15: Union Minister Kiren Rijiju Saturday reiterated that Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood will be restored but stopped short of providing a definite timeline for the process.
Speaking to reporters during his visit to Kashmir, Rijiju said that both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have previously assured that statehood will be reinstated "in due course of time." However, when pressed for a concrete timeframe, he declined to comment.
"The prime minister and the home minister have already made their position clear that statehood will be restored at the appropriate time, with well-defined powers and functions," Rijiju said.
The minister, who holds the parliamentary affairs and minority affairs portfolios, emphasized that his visit was focused on discussions related to the Union Budget rather than political or governance matters. He refrained from addressing questions on the division of powers between the lieutenant governor and the elected chief minister, stating that Jammu and Kashmir remains a Union Territory for now.
"The lieutenant governor is currently the administrative head of the UT, but we also have an elected government that was formed recently," he added, without elaborating on any potential roadmap for statehood restoration. [KNT]
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