Srinagar, Jun 19: Speaking at the All Party meet called by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday, former chief minister and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti pitched for the declaration of ceasefire in Jammu and Kashmir after Amarnath Yatra.
Mehbooba participated in the All Party meeting as the PDP president and demanded political reach-out and announcement of ceasefire in the state, a party press release here said.
She said that recently the statement made by the Prime Minister about ‘Sab Ka Sath, Sab Ka Vikas’ and ‘Sab Ka Vishvas’ should be implemented on ground and the best place to start with that is Kashmir which feels alienated, bruised and wounded.
“We hope that there is a way out to mend the relations between the people of Jammu and Kashmir and rest of the country. There is only one way to resolve Kashmir which is through political means and dialogue. Late Vajpayee had made an earnest endeavour and prime minster Modi too tried to pursue the same approach. However, unfortunately, he couldn’t get the positive response from Pakistan and the terror incidents only acted as a spoilsport in the process,” she said.
The PDP chief added that in spite of all the unwanted incidents that hampered the peace initiatives, dialogue is the only way to resolve the crises.
“We hope that after Amarnath Yatra is concluded peacefully and harmoniously, initiative will again be taken to resume dialogue with all stakeholders in Kashmir. You can dominate an enemy but not your own people,” the press release quoted Mehbooba s having said during the meeting.
“People of Jammu and Kashmir, at the time of partition of the sub-continent, went with the idea of India which is of inclusiveness and accommodation. Our country is marked by diversity of all kinds and the biggest challenge is to maintain this diversity and no attempts should be made to dilute it,” Mehbooba said.
The PDP president remarked that the Constitution and the political system alone can satisfy the aspirations of the people and that the problems being faced by any alienated section of the society are addressed within the country.
She said “it is high time that country sees why the people of Jammu and Kashmir do not look up to New Delhi for redressal of their grievances anymore.”
That lack of trust, said the PDP president, “has to be restored and that can be done by nobody except the prime minister who has come back with a huge majority”.
She added that Kashmir has remained a major challenge for successive prime ministers for last seven decades and that in order to end the continuing tragedy of Kashmir, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed “staked his everything including his party’s political capital, life-time of service and went with the BJP in the hope that conflict of Kashmir will finally be resolved.
“Now that the prime minister has come back with a renewed and a stronger mandate, we expect him to act decisively and resolve our problems in accordance with the political aspirations of the people,” she said .
Mehbooba maintained that the Muslims of India have stood by the interests of this country and the present “othering” being faced by them is very painful.
“We have to see that there was a three-decade-long insurgency in Kashmir but there wasn’t a single Muslim from mainland India who picked up arms and joined militancy in Kashmir. This community has to be owned as equal stakeholders. ‘Sab Ka Sath, Sab Ka Vishwas’ has to include Muslims specifically,” she said.
On ‘one nation one poll’ proposal, PDP president stated that India is defined by its diversity in culture, in linguistics, in eating and living habits and therefore politically also this diversity should be allowed to thrive.
