Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed the nation two days after Parliament approved his government’s historic decision to reorganise Jammu and Kashmir and end the region’s semi-autonomous state.
Thousands of troops have put Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) under an unprecedented lockdown as Modi speaks.
"A new dawn, better tomorrow awaits!” Modi had said on Twitter on Tuesday after the Lok Sabha approved a resolution to end Article 370 and a Bill to bifurcate the state of J&K into two Union territories. Article 370 gave J&K’s state legislature freedom to draft its own laws except in the areas of communications, defence, finance, and foreign affairs. It prohibited Indian citizens from purchasing land in the state.
Home Minister Amit Shah, who steered the legislations through Parliament, has said Article 370 only benefitted “three families” of Kashmir, but the people remained in penury.
During the debate in the Lok Sabha, speakers from the ruling BJP-led NDA sparred with those from the Congress over Kashmir’s accession and the role of first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru and his deputy Sardar Patel.
Pakistan on Wednesday expelled the Indian High Commissioner and suspended bilateral trade to protest what it called New Delhi’s “unilateral and illegal” move to revoke the special status of J&K.
A Donald Trump administration official told PTI in Washington on Wednesday the US appealed for an “urgent need” for dialogue among all actors to reduce tensions and avoid a potential military escalation in South Asia.
 "HIGHLIGHTS: New age begins in Jammu and Kashmir, says PM Narendra Modi")
