Respond to Imran’s offer of talks: Mehbooba to Modi

Former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir and regional PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to respond to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan’s call for sustainable dialogue process between the two countries at the earliest.

Cricketer-turned-politician Khan, in his first public address after leading his party to victory in the general elections, had said Pakistan is ready to improve its ties with India and his government would like the leaders of the two sides to resolve all disputes, including the “core issue” of Kashmir, through talks.

“Pakistan is getting a new government, a new prime minister. He (Khan) has made an offer of friendship. I want to appeal PM Modi to respond to the offer positively,” Mehbooba said while addressing people at the PDP’s 19th raising day function in Srinagar.

“This opportunity (Khan’s offer) needs to be grabbed at the earliest so that the dream of a peaceful South Asia is realised without any further delay,” she added.

At her first public meeting after losing the power last month, the PDP president said she had reservations about the alliance with rightwing BJP right from the day one and had advised her father (late) Mufti Mohammad Sayeed against it.

“But he (Mufti) overruled arguing that the coalition wasn't meant to build infrastructure in the state but to end the sufferings of Kashmiris. I swear on Allah. My politics would start and end with my father. That is the reason why I was not ready to form the government when he (Mufti) left this world,” Mehbooba said.

The PDP entered into an alliance with the BJP in March 2015 after fractured mandate in December 2014 Assembly election results with late Mufti as chief minister. However, Mufti passed away in January 2016 and his daughter Mehbooba didn’t take over for the next four months. “I formed the government at the insistence of the workers, senior leaders and legislators. They told me that it was Mufti Sahab’s decision and you have to drink this cup of poison,” she said.

Mehbooba became Jammu and Kashmir's first woman chief minister in April 2016 and continued to be in power for till the BJP pulled the rug from under her feet on 19 June 2018.

Giving her clarifications over civilian killings during her tenure as CM, she said, “There were clashes every day which led to killings. Nothing was in my hands. What was in my hands I did. We got the Centre to announce a ceasefire and the killings stopped.”

On Article 35-A, which gives special status to J&K, Mehbooba appealed to all the parties to set aside differences and fight together to defend the Article. All the parties should set aside differences and defend the article the way we did during past two years,” she said.

The former CM warned New Delhi that any tinkering with Article 35-A would turn the state into a veritable inferno.