KL Report
JAMMU
Reacting to the BJP’s call for scrapping the Article 370 the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) patron, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed Monday said the article is non-negotiable, irrevocable and those talking about its abrogation are ignorant about the constitutional position of the state and are misleading people of the country.
Taking on the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, Narendra Modi for backtracking from his earlier statement in which he had said in Jammu that ‘he would follow Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s policy on Kashmir’, Mufti said this is not the way to ‘start a new chapter’ in the country which Modi usually talks about. “Article 370 provides the mechanism for a constitutional relationship between the state and rest of the country and it cannot be abrogated without bringing into question the fundamentals of that relationship.
“It is an Article of faith which is non-negotiable and irrevocable” said Mufti while commenting on the BJP manifesto released today. He was addressing election rallies at Rajouri and Surankote in Jammu parliamentary seat. Mufti said the PDP will resist any attempt at dilution of the state’s special position guaranteed by the constitution.
He said by reviving the old rhetoric the BJP is simply negating the policies of Vajpayee and such a policy has everything in it to hurt the sensibilities of the people of J&K and prospects of reducing the trust deficit it suffers with rest of the country.
“ Vajpayee reached out to the people of J&K and had vowed to resolve the Kashmir issue under the ambit of insaniyat (humanity),” he said adding Modi’s speeches in Jammu would look like mere lip service to Vajpayee’s statesmanship in the light of his party’s manifesto.
Mufti said it was essential for any aspirant leader of the country to be inclusive and accommodative both on home and external fronts. “If Modi has a vision for India then he can’t keep Pakistan out of that as that country has to be taken on board to realize a permanent peace in the region”.
