Accusing the successive regimes in the erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir of following Kashmir Centric policies during the last over seven decades, Ashok Koul asserted that it was because of such policies that Jammu people were deprived of their due share in every sphere. The senior BJP leader expressed this during a special programme organized at Karan Palace, Mandal Raipur Domana, District Jammu Rural, under the chairmanship of Ashok Koul and State Vice President and Former Minister Sham Lal Sharma.
Many people from Raipur Domana, Marh and Chhamb Vidhan Sabha witnessed joining of Bharatiya Janata Party by over hundred people mostly those belonging to Sikh Community led by former Sarpanch Panchayat Misriwala Sardar Gurbachan Singh. 
President BJP District Jammu Rural, Rajendra Singh, Karan Singh, Baba Chanchal Singh, General Secretary of the District and many senior workers were also present on the occasion. Ashok Koul and Sham Lal Sharma welcomed the new entrants into the party fold.
Ashok Koul, while welcoming the new entrants, said that their joining has enhanced the party’s strength and advised them to work with great zeal and enthusiasm in their respective areas to further strengthen the party. He also asked them to conduct awareness campaigns for highlighting the pro-people policies of the party and its Govt led by PM Narendra Modi at the Centre.
Taking a dig at Congress Koul asked Rahul Gandhi to apologize from the people of Jammu and Kashmir for terming the Holy Pindis of Maa Vaishno Devi as symbol. He said the whole cadre of J&K Congress should apologize for such ill-mannered remark of Rahul Gandhi.

While welcoming the newcomers into the party fold, Former Minister Sh Sham Lal said that having become part of the BJP cadre they are expected to work relentlessly at the ground level especially to fulfill the aspiration of people of Jammu who had been deprived of their due rights for long and have now started feeling drift on ground with restoration of rights to refugees and empowerment of women. He said that BJP led Govt is committed to the overall development of all the areas and the party having full confidence in its workers and activists working on ground will ensure the implementation of its people centric policies in true letter and spirit.

Former Sarpanch Sardar Gurbachan Singh while speaking on the occasion said that we are impressed by the crystal clear ideology and the people centric policies of the Bharatiya Janata Party and last but not the least by the hard work and dedication with which the Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji is taking the country forward in every sphere especially in making India a nation to reckon with at the international level.(KNS)