Patel Was Right, Nehru Wrong On Kashmir

Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Wednesday said India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru was wrong and Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the country’s first home minister, was right in handling the Jammu and Kashmir issue after Independence. Prasad was addressing a press conference here to mark the National Democratic Alliance government completing 100 days in office after being sworn in for a second consecutive term on May 30. “I want to say that in Jammu and Kashmir, Sardar Patel was right and Jawaharlal Nehru was wrong,” Prasad said. The minister said Article 370, which gave special status to the northern state, was a “historic blunder” and by scrapping that special status, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has shown “immense courage and corrected that historical wrong”.