STATE TIMES NEWS
Srinagar: Cautioning against any political misadventure in Jammu and Kashmir, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on Friday said the retrograde rhetoric being introduced in the State by divisive forces is fraught with dangerous consequences as it would deepen the trust deficit between Srinagar and New Delhi.
“I advise caution to all the stakeholders against pushing Jammu and Kashmir towards dangerous polarization for electoral gains,” Mufti said while addressing massive election rallies at Kangan and Doda today. He said J&K is a victim of partition and PDP won’t allow the divisive forces to push the State into similar horrible situation again by fiddling with its special status.
Mufti said no political party should try to make religious, sectarian and ethnic divide part of its agenda and instead allow Jammu and Kashmir to flourish as a bouquet of communal harmony. “Any attempt to fiddle with the composite culture of the State has the potential of not only deepening the trust deficit between Srinagar and Delhi, but fueling alienation as well,” he said and added that Jammu and Kashmir has already suffered immensely because of the political uncertainties and efforts have to be made by one and all to pull the State out of the morass.
Mufti said Kashmir has remained a challenge for the all the Prime Ministers since 1947 there was need for bold steps to address the issue instead of making overt and covert efforts towards political invasion of the sensitive state. “Only a multidimensional approach and not the hawkish rhetoric would save the state from decades-old miseries,” he said and added that Kashmir issue has to be addressed at political, diplomatic, constitutional and economic levels.
He said the trust deficit between residents of J&K and rest of the country has to be bridged by ensuring justice, fair-play and equality before law and unless the people in the state enjoy the dividends of being part of a democratic system the alienation levels would in-turn result in more problems for them in the state. “Governance deficit and trust deficit are the main causes of ever increasing alienation of the people so there is a need to restore peoples’ faith in governance and democracy,” he said and added that PDP is committed to bridge the gap between different regions and also between people of Jammu and Kashmir and rest of the country.