Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed visit to Kashmir on November 7, Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed hoped that the visit would be path-breaking both for the political intervention and developmental flip in the embattled region. Sayeed visited south Kashmir’s Shopian district and flood-affected parts of Srinagar to justify his party’s alliance with the BJP “in the interest of the people of the State”.
Mufti hoped that Modi will follow the footsteps of former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee who also delivered a public speech in Srinagar in 2003 during Mufti’s previous regime.
“The primary objective of my alliance with BJP is to integrate the people of the three regions and bridge the gap between the State and the rest of the country”, Mufti said at a public meeting at Rajbagh.
“After the Assembly election results were announced, we fell short of majority. I had several options available (to form the Government). I received calls from Sonia Gandhi, Ghulam Nabi Azad and even Omar Abdullah, who offered unconditional support, but I saw an opportunity to go with BJP and respect the mandate it had won in Jammu region,” he stated.
Describing the vibrant democratic institutions as India’s greatest strength, Mufti Sayeed said Narendra Modi is democratically-elected Prime Minister of the country, who rose to power with unprecedented support of over a billion people of the country. He said earlier the people had reposed similar faith in the leadership of Manmohan Singh, Atal Behari Vajpayee and VP Singh. “I have met the PM on quite a few occasions. He has a mission to transform India and he is keen to usher in a new era of development in J&K,” he stated.
Asserting that he doesn’t believe in sell outs and conjuring up things, the Chief Minister made specific mention of the Agenda of the Alliance with BJP that safeguards the State’s special status guaranteed by the Indian Constitution and favours giving space to people with different political ideologies.
“Our alliance with BJP was not a kneejerk reaction. It took us two months and several rounds of frantic discussions to finalize the Agenda of Alliance, which remains the cornerstone of governance for us,” he stated.
On adverse affects on J&K due to prolonged confrontation with Pakistan, Mufti Sayeed reminded people of Vajpayee’s big heart during his visit to Srinagar in 2003 where he attended a public function when the two countries were eyeball-to-eyeball, in wake of unprecedented attack on the Indian Parliament.
He said State’s development takes a back seat when guns roar on borders and people residing in close proximity on either side become cannon fodder.
“I am hopeful that Prime Minister’s visit to the State will be path-breaking and help in building a similar atmosphere of trust that Vajpayee so successfully weaved,” he said.
Hailing the vision and maturity of the State leaders who saw J&K’s future with India, Mufti Sayeed drew the attention of the people towards Pakistan which is struggling with far too many spells of political instability.
“As compared to India, Pakistan has not seen sustained growth of its democratic institutions,” he added.
Describing dissent as essence of democracy, the CM said sustained dialogue alone, both at internal and external fronts, will help J&K become an abode of peace and prosperity.
“Democracy is a battle of ideas. People can have divergent views. We will carry them along and engage with even those having different political ideologies,” he said.