The Prime Minister had expressed his deep concern and pain over the situation in the valley and asked all the political parties to work together to find a permanent and lasting solution to problems in the state.
Advertisement
She said a peaceful resolution, as discussed with the Prime Minister, will ensure that the people in the state will live their life with dignity and peace. Prime Minister has assured that it will be implemented.
This is the first meeting between the Prime Minister and Ms. Mufti after the unrest broke.
According to her, Pakistan had lost an opportunity for reconciliation when Mr. Modi had visited Lahore in December previous year and when Home Minister Rajnath Singh had visited Islamabad recently for the SAARC Interior Ministers meeting.
Dimple alleged that the political parties like PDP, BJP, Congress, NC are playing politics on the present Kashmir unrest in the State and are doing nothing to restore peace in the State except adding fuel to the fire. “I have high hopes from the Prime Minister”.
She said the intra- and inter-state confidence building measures (CBMs) initiated during that period had helped transform the situation in the State and the region. She appealed to all to “help” her resolve the issue.
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday demanded immediate talks with the separatists to resolve Kashmir issue. “If things don’t happen during his tenure, it won’t happen ever”, she said.
While the chief minister has placed her trust in the Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she has also exposed her vulnerabilities in the process.
She directly blamed Pakistan for inciting the violence and said Kashmiri youth were attacking security forces and police stations after being provoked to do so.
It is they who are being killed, not those whose wards were instigating violence, ” she said.
In increasing efforts to control the violence in the valley, an all-party delegation has been organised that will visit Kashmir in the first week of September.
Mehbooba Mufti said that the best time to solve Kashmir’s problem was now – when the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had absolute majority in the parliament.
Mehbooba had strongly defended security forces action yesterday during a press conference and had said “People came on streets, we imposed curfew”. We have to reach out to them.
She said the situation in Kashmir has been bad since 2008.
Becoming emotional, she said she had been in power only two months when trouble erupted.
She made a passionate appeal to Kashmiri protesters for peace and sought “one chance” to get the Kashmir issue solved.
Sources said Mufti feels that separatists should be allowed hold their protest rallies, but the Centre wants to go slow on this.
“Our children are being misled to become human shields, ” she said.
Advertisement
Owaisi held both the Centre and the state government responsible for the ongoing unrest in Kashmir.
