However, his daughter and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti has been dragging her feet over the government formation with the BJP demanding concessions from the central government, including more funds and some power hyrdro projects to be transferred to the state government.
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The party is tight-lipped about Mehbooba’s Delhi visit. MLAs told her to take a final call over government formation as the delay is politically hurting PDP.
While officially no reason was given for postponing the meeting, sources said, in the backdrop of Union Finance minister Arun Jaitley’s Monday’s speech in Parliament related to the state has rekindled the hope of government formation within the PDP. “Since there was no new inflow of funds from New Delhi, it goes on the prove that the PDP-BJP Government had deliberately suffocated the State, depriving people of development and relief”, the NC Working President said while talking to reporters during an extensive tour of his Beerwah Assembly Segment in North Kashmir. “Anything could happen in the coming days”.
“The Governor’s administration has released a certain amount of money for flood victims, undertaken dredging of Jhelum on a war-footing and resumed work on stalled developmental projects that were initiated before the PDP-BJP alliance took over”.
On the PDP front, Mehbooba Mufti was expected to share her view point with the BJP representatives informally in the company of other PDP leaders before meeting BJP top brass, if need be. The alliance has been in limbo ever since former J&K chief minister Mufti Sayeed’s death in January. “Mere liye mere walid ka faisla pathar ki lakeer hai (for me the decision taken by my father is written in stone)”.
Mr. Jaitley also reiterated the Centre’s commitment to setting up an IIT, IIM and AIIMS in the State. “There are some conditions that have to be fulfilled by the Centre”.
So far no schedule has been fixed for possible meeting between the PDP and BJP leaders at the highest level, BJP leaders privy to fast paced developments revealed. Jaitley’s commitment on the floor of the Parliament regarding J&K came at a time when PDP-BJP talks over government formation are in a deadlock. “It’s a question of what the Centre wants to do for the people of J&K”, she said.
“I can’t say when the government will be formed”.
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PDP too seems to have softened its rhetoric after Jaitley statement and readying to discuss modalities for the government formation.
