New Delhi, Nov 1 (HS): Peoples Democratic Party president and former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday launched a sharp attack on the Union government, saying people across the country need to wake up as, according to her, attempts are being made to weaken the constitutional rights that empower citizens to change governments.

Addressing an INDIA bloc rally at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi, Mehbooba said promises had been made before the elections to provide two crore jobs every year, but not only had the promised jobs failed to materialise, those serving in the Army, who once joined the force with pride and dignity, had also been reduced to “daily wagers”.

She also criticised, in her words, those pursuing politics in the name of “Hindutva” and alleged that “they even stole donations meant for the Shri Ram temple.” “What could be a greater shame than this?” she asked.

Mehbooba said she had come from Jammu and Kashmir and wanted to tell the people of the country that if they did not wake up now, the situation could worsen.

She said the Constitution had been weakened since 2024, even though it was the Constitution that gave people the right to change a government through their vote, remove an existing government and elect a new one.

“This is the right they want to take away from you,” she said.

Mehbooba said the people of Jammu and Kashmir had already suffered devastation and alleged that the Constitution had been destroyed there in 2019.

Warning people across the country, she said, “You must be careful, lest they turn the entire country into Jammu and Kashmir.”

Mehbooba said the people of Jammu and Kashmir stood with the people of the rest of the country and would stand shoulder to shoulder with them in their struggle.

“We are with you, shoulder to shoulder. We are with you in your struggle,” she said.

She said she wanted an India where Jammu and Kashmir was regarded as the soul of the country and where its people could live with their heads held high alongside the rest of the country.

“We want to live in this country whose soul is Jammu and Kashmir, whose ‘Idea of India’ is Jammu and Kashmir, standing shoulder to shoulder with you, with our heads held high, and say: ‘Sare Jahan Se Achha Hindustan Hamara’,” Mehbooba said.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Zahoor Hussain Bhat