Srinagar: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday approached all political parties asking them to come together for a joint outreach to the Centre for initiating a “constructive dialogue” on issues concerning the people of Jammu and Kashmir and safeguard their constitutional rights.
In her letter to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and other political and civil society leaders across Jammu and Kashmir, she also referred to the recent developments in Ladakh and said the breakthroughs achieved by the Leh Apex Body and Kargil Democratic Alliance with the Centre offer an important lesson – only dialogue can deliver meaningful outcomes.
The former chief minister proposed a united political initiative, urging leaders to set aside differences and jointly advocate for the resumption of meaningful dialogue on Jammu and Kashmir.
Emphasising that a collective voice is essential to represent the aspirations, grievances, and concerns of the people of the region at the national level, she urged Abdullah to call a meeting of all stakeholders on the issue.
In her letter to the chief minister, Mehbooba Mufti said she had sought an appointment with him but due to his preoccupation it has not been possible.
“Therefore, I am taking the liberty of writing to you since time is running out and we cannot afford to delay things any further,” she said.
“Jammu and Kashmir finds itself yet again at a crossroads in its history where the pervasive feeling of despair and disillusionment has gripped the state. It necessitates a broad consensus above and across party and partisan lines to pull J&K out of the current debilitating stalemate. If we want to restore the dignity and security of our people, a constructive dialogue with the Government of India is a much needed imperative,” she said.
Mufti said the time has come to make a united outreach to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah and prevail upon them to initiate a sustained dialogue with the people of Jammu and Kashmir.
“We have to keep our disagreements and contrarian views on the back-burner to unite for the common good and collective welfare. This cannot become a matter of appropriating political credit or point scoring. Rather it must become a moment of unification in the largest interest of people we all claim to represent,” she said.
Mufti said Abdullah as the head of the state should initiate the “much needed process of bringing all parties together through an official meeting”.
“This will set the ball rolling for us to formally reach out to the Central government. Given the fact that disagreements and squabbling between regional parties have been detrimental to the collective interests of J&K a reasonable consensus especially post 2019 is the only solution. If Ladakh could do it, so can we,” she added.
She said, however, the chief minister’s support is a prerequisite for the success of this political platform.
“Genuine unity in these difficult unprecedented times can lead us towards restoring our rights and dignity of our people guaranteed by the Indian Constitution,” she said.
Besides Abdullah, the former chief minister wrote to Leader of Opposition in J&K assembly Sunil Sharma, JKPCC president Tariq Hameed Karra, CPI(M) leader Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami, People’s Conference chairman Sajad Gani Lone, MP Engineer Rashid, AAP president Mehraj Malik, PDF chairman Hakeem Mohammad Yaseen, J&K National Panthers Party president Harsh Dev Singh, Shiv Sena (J&K unit) president Manish Sahni, Kashmiri Pandit Sangharsh Samiti president Sanjay Tickoo, and Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee chairman Jaspal Singh.
