Srinagar: Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senior leader and former Education Minister, Nayeem Akhtar Thursday said that the centre cannot deal with what he mentioned areas of concern casually as it was only the late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed whose stature could absorb such casualness apparently hinting at resetting the coalition terms before Mehbooba Mufti became the chief minister.
Nayeem said that the non-controversial agreements reached between the PDP and BJPreturn of power projects, smart cities, land under armed forces use, international dimension of Jammu and Kashmirare just to name a few that should have happened but didnt.
Im just saying these are just areas of concern and Jammu and Kashmir is a national concern, Akhtar said. You cant deal with it so casually and mufti sahib had a stature that he could absorb this.
Commenting on the deadlock on government formation, Akhtar said that the only dilemma with the PDP right now was the absence of a towering leader as that of the late Mufti Sayeed. We cant just go and sit in the ministerial chairs and continue with the same thing, he said. We may not be able to repeat what Mufti Sahab did through the weight of his personality and the dint of his hard work.
Akhtar said that in absence of a formal meeting, we may not be able to take the final call on government formation. Mehbooba Mufti has still not convened a meeting and she is yet to call her close colleagues like Muzaffar Beigh and all other senior colleagues, he said. I think in a few days she will be able to talk to the party and take a final call.
He said that PDP has a vision about Jammu and Kashmir which in coalition with BJP translated into governance agenda and we have to see and assess how far we have gone so far: Even BJP has to do stocktaking as Kashmir doesnt belong to PDP only, Akhtar said. It is not only our concern its a national concern and in the scenario that is developing around us we cant leave such things which we are able to do.
Akhtar said the agenda of alliance was drafted in such a way that is became a very sacred document for us. We dont it to be treated like a scripture that you keep on the shelf look at it every day and take its blessings every day, the soft-spoken leader said. It has to be implemented and implemented right now.
He further said that PDP leaders were assessing whether Mufti Sahabs vision which he said is the common vision of the Prime Minister Narender Modi and Mufti Sahab regarding Jammu and Kashmir has been taken forward and if so, how much, especially because Jammu and Kashmir is not like running a municipality.
The alliance was not between any two ordinary parties, he said. Mufti Sahab would call it an alliance between north and south pole.
Akhtar said that Mufti Sayeed had forged the alliance with the BJP at a time when the country was led by one of the most powerful prime ministers that contemporary India had seen. Narender Modi was elected to the office of the prime minister with an overwhelming mandate of the country obviously in the hope of trying to give Jammu and Kashmir a relief.
Akhtar said that had it been so simple, the PDP could have done that any time as was the precedence. We could have done that in early 2015 when there was a fractured mandate and there were so many options but Mufti sahib very consciously and objectively decided to strike on an alliance with BJP, he said.
Mufti Sayeed till his last breath had faith that this coalition will deliver despite the bitter experiences of the past nine month, Akhtar said. His last query on the deathbed was about the relief money and package for displaced Pandits over which the government of India not only dragged its feet and haggled.
He expressed displeasure over New Delhis failure to make an attempt to end the triangle of hatred among Srinagar, New Delhi and Islamabad through reconciliation from Kashmir.
He alleged that the last minute pruning of the Prime Ministers relief package discouraged the State from buying back the power projects from the NHPC, delay in relief amount for flood victims further drifted well-earned constituency of the PDP.
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