Srinagar, Apr 09: Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and apprised him of the overall situation in the state, stressing on the need to end the cycle of violence by addressing alienation among the youth.
Mehbooba’s meeting with the Prime Minister comes three days after she appealed to the country’s leadership to listen to the voices of pain from the state.
“Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi today and apprised him about the overall situation in Jammu and Kashmir,” an official spokesman said.
He said the Chief Minister stressed on “finding ways and means to end the cycle of violence in the state by addressing the element of alienation among the youth”.
She said the people of the state, having suffered immensely during the turmoil of the past three decades, were looking up to the country’s political leadership to support them in getting out of the cycle of uncertainty and deaths.
Reiterating her demand for peaceful engagement with all stakeholders in this regard, Mehbooba sought more frequent meetings at the highest levels between India and Pakistan.
“She also favoured the idea that the two Army commands be in touch to minimise tensions across the borders in the state which has affected people living in these areas,” the spokesman said.
Mehbooba also pleaded for taking the cross-Line of Control movement to the next level by working on opening more historic routes across the LoC and movement of more people to build public confidence in peaceful engagements.
She also called for development of Sharda Peth, an ancient seat of learning across the LoC, like Nalanda and Takshila.
“Implementation of the ‘Agenda of Alliance’ (between the PDP and the BJP), execution of the Prime Minister’s Development Plan (PMDP) and other mega developmental projects in the state came up for discussion during the meeting,” spokesman added.
Chief Minister also met defence minister in New Delhi today and underscored the need for adopting a humane approach while dealing with the situations and avoiding collateral damage during security operations.
“Every civilian killing or collateral damage puts the peaceful engagement efforts of the government on the back burner and gives the vested elements an opportunity to exploit the situation to their advantage,” she said, according to a government spokesman.
“Both the Chief Minister and the Defence Minister agreed on sticking to a professional approach to deal with the situations to win back hearts and minds of people,” he said.
During the meeting, Mehbooba Mufti also raised the issue of enhancement of rent on the properties, including orchards and buildings, under the use of Army in the State.
She also sought expediting the process of handing over of balance portion of Tattoo Ground to local administration for developing tourist infrastructure.
“Besides, Mehbooba Mufti also sought handing over of 456 kanals of land from Army at Anantnag High Grounds and vacation of Kharbathang Plateau at Kargil in lieu of alternate pieces of land. She also sought clearance of bottlenecks coming in the way of expansion of Jammu Airport and Jammu University,” said the spokesman.
Mehbooba visits injured cop in Delhi hospital
Srinagar, Apr 09: Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today paid a visit to a police officer, who was injured in clashes with protesters last week, at Safdarjung Hospital in New Delhi, an official said.
Inspector Manzoor Ahmad, the station house officer (SHO) of Nigeen Police Station, was badly injured in a stone-pelting incident here last Friday. He was subsequently airlifted to New Delhi for specialised treatment.
The Chief Minister enquired about the SHO’s condition from the doctors and wished him a speedy recovery, an official spokesperson said.
She also called on former minister and senior PDP leader Qazi Muhammad Afzal, who is recuperating from illness, the spokesperson added.
Mehbooba visits injured cop in Delhi hospital
