Srinagar: The People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president and former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday took on National Conference (NC) for leveling charges against her party, saying “if NC will start debate over past issues, it will create troubles for them”.
She asserted that PDP “has never contested elections for the lust of power, rather the party always maintained to keep the party’s agenda intact and atop”.
Mehbooba Mufti said, “There is a party which generally stepped out to contest elections, but the aim was to form the government; they had no other motto.”
Without naming NC, Mufti continued: “I’m surprised it is the same party which, from 1947-2002, came into power many times with 70-75 seats. But when we ascertain their performance they have achieved nothing. “
Unlike them, “PDP under the leadership of late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed with only 16 seats did a tremendous job, and dominated over NC’s 75 seat performance,” Mufti told media on the sidelines of a joining ceremony at the party headquarters in Srinagar.
Pointing to 1987 elections, the PDP president accused NC of resorting to poll irregularities, and said “as the poll rigging took place in 1987, the gun is not leaving Jammu & Kashmir since!”
The former chief minister said that PDP too formed governments in the past in alliance with the Congress and the BJP, but these alliances were based “on principles”.
She also claimed that the formation of the next government in J&K too “cannot be conceived without PDP’s involvement”.
“We formed governments with Congress and BJP which were based on principles. We ensured dialogue with Pakistan, brought a high-level delegation of MPs to the doors to Hurriyat Conference, withdrew 12,000 FIRs which were lodged against youth in the times of NC rule,” she claimed.
While questioning NC vice-president over his performance, Mufti said, “I want to ask Omar Abdullah when you were a minister in the BJP government what did you do… You brought POTA (Prevention of Terrorism Act), 2002 to J&K, banned ‘Shahtoosh’ which was a source of livelihood for the poor, and being a junior foreign minister you were convincing the outside world that J&K is no issue. You also assisted in the assassination of a Kashmiri in Tihar jail (referring to the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru on Feb 9, 2013, when Omar Abdullah was J&K chief minister).
“But when we shook hands with the BJP, it was based on principles and PDP didn’t comprise its agenda,” Mufti claimed.
About Shopian “rape and murder” case of 2009, Mufti alleged that those who complained were booked and arrested by the NC government, while PDP took a “strong cognizance” of Kathua rape and murder and “dropped two ministers in our times”.
“If NC will debate over the past issues with PDP, it will land them in trouble,” Mufti asserted.
