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SRINAGAR: Congress repudiated on Friday a senior functionary’s statement backing a BJP MLA’s call for Jammu’s statehood, asserting it stands for J&K’s unity and restoration of full statehood to the region.J&K Congress president Tariq Karra made it clear the party had nothing to do with Lal Singh’s stand. “The initial statement on a separate Jammu state was made by BJP’s Sham Lal Sharma. When Lal Singh was asked about it, he said he had no objection. It is his personal view,” Karra said.Such comments by individuals should not be taken seriously, Karra said. “J&K is a very sensitive region. Congress has always maintained that Jammu and Kashmir must remain united and that its full statehood should be restored,” he added.Karra argued that BJP had fragmented J&K by turning it into two Union Territories in 2019. “We are already opposed to this one fragmentation. How can we support any further division?” he asked.Singh, a former MP, had on Thursday backed BJP legislator Sharma’s push for a separate Jammu, saying there was nothing wrong. “Ladakh was made separate. It did not affect anything. The only issue is that there should not be any break from the country,” Singh had said in Jammu.He argued that smaller states improve governance and development. “Even Uttar Pradesh should be divided into 15 states, with a CM for each region, so that the chief minister can reach each household.”
