Jammu: The Congress party has openly criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for providing misleading information about employment opportunities in Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir (IIOJK), claiming a severe job shortage that marks the highest unemployment rate the region has faced in nearly half a century.
According to Kashmir Media Service, Dolly Sharma, the National Media Coordinator for the All India Congress Committee (AICC), addressed the media in Jammu, outlining the stark challenges faced by approximately 2.5 million job-seeking youths in the region. Sharma emphasized the disparity between the BJP’s claims of job creation and the reality of a struggling employment sector with a soaring unemployment rate, the second highest in India under the current BJP government.
Further criticisms were levied regarding the slow pace of government recruitment and ongoing recruitment scandals since the controversial revocation of Article 370 in 2019, which stripped the region of its special status. Onika Mehrotra, another AICC Media Coordinator, highlighted the unmet promises of industrial growth and job opportunities post-Article 370, alongside issues arising from the issuance of domicile certificates to non-natives, intensifying competition for local job seekers.