Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday accused the BJP and RSS of trying to demolish the composite culture of Jammu and Kashmir.

Rahul, who was on two days visit here, was addressing party activists in Jammu after paying obeisance at the cave shrine of Mata Vaishnodevi on Thursday. He started his speech by exhorting party workers to chant ‘Jai Mata Di’.

Speaking about his relationship with Jammu and Kashmir, he said “whenever I visit here, I feel like having come home”. I am a Kashmiri Pandit and my family has a long relationship with J&K that has been “degraded” from a fullfledged state to a union territory (UT) by the BJP government.

“I am always in high spirits when I come to Jammu and Kashmir but at the same time get upset on seeing the way the RSS and BJP are not only trying to break the composite culture but also weaken the bonds of brotherhood between various regions of J&K”, he said.

Those earning their livelihood from tourism and trade have been hit hard due to wrong policies of the BJP government. Farmers are suffering across the country. BJP leadership is shying away from accepting the ground realities but the common people should not be afraid of truthfully highlighting the problems that the masses were facing due to the wrong policies of the government, he said.

Rahul had a dig at the media, which he said, was reporting the way the ruling BJP wanted.

Congress leader and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad, JKPCC chief GA Mir and party incharge Rajni Patel were among those who were present in the programme.

“Today morning, a delegation of displaced Kashmiri Pandits met me. They told me that Congress implemented many welfare schemes for them, but BJP has done nothing. I promise my Kashmiri Pandit brothers that I will do something for them,” said Rahul.

He said that having visited Srinagar and Jammu, now he intends to go to Ladakh.

Earlier, Ghulam Nabi Azad said that during his two and a half years chief ministership J&K witnessed massive growth. He counted the development projects including hospitals that were constructed in all districts and super specialty hospital and a dental hospital were established in Jammu. What has BJP given to J&K during its seven years of rule, he asked.

J&K Congress chief GA Mir said that the party workers have refused to succumb to the onslaught and pressure tactics of the BJP government.