The Government formation exercise in Jammu & Kashmir has entered into a critical phase amid reports of a possible meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and PDP patron Mufti Muhammad Sayeed to iron out the differences on some contentious issue. Sources said that many factors have activated internally in the PDP to give it cold feet on entering into an alliance with the BJP.
The phenomenal victory of the Arvind Kejrival-led AAP in Delhi is one of the potent factors that has brought pressure on PDP leadership to avoid alliance, sources told The Pioneer. The BJP, on its part, is also not willing to budge on some crucial political issues like AFSPA abrogation and permanent settlement of West Pakistan refugees in Jammu. Prime Minister Modi is expected to take a final call on any possible dilution of the BJP stand on these issues.
Sources said that PDP patron began to revisit his “decision” to enter into coalition with the BJP shortly after the Delhi poll verdict. After counselling PM Narendra Modi to take lessons from the poll debacle, the emboldened PDP also issued 11-point list as a pre-requisite for alliance.
The list included normalisation of ties with Pakistan, talks with separatists (Hurriyat Conference), AFSPA removal within one year, freeing land under Army occupation, safeguarding Article 370, return of power projects, compensation for the losses to the state due to Indus Water Treaty between India and Pakistan, free trade and travel between divided parts of J&K, status-quo on West Pakistan Refugee issue, coal mine allotment and return of jailed J&K residents to the State besides some fulfilment of developmental promises.
The BJP’s senior leader Dr Nirmal Singh, who is tipped to be deputy Chief Minister should the coalition between the two parties materialises, hit back on the PDP proposals saying the final call on the AFSPA would be taken by the Army. Sources said that after Singh’s retort, the BJP top brass has issued a gag order for the State leadership. “All the decisions and statements will be taken by the BJP high command in Delhi”, a senior BJP leader told The Pioneer.
Sources said that Mufti, who is in Mumbai, is under tremendous pressure from a section of his party leadership and Kashmiri intelligentsia to hold back his decision to enter into alliance with the BJP. A Mumbai based constitutional expert, AG Noorani, who wrote a three-part essay series in a local daily warned Mufti against “historic blunder” of aligning with the BJP. Interestingly, Noorani, a habitual National Conference basher, was all praise for Mufti’s self-rule formula and even endorsed it during a PDP managed conference in Srinagar few years ago.
A large section of society is using social media to express resentment against the possible PDP-BJP tie-up. The pictures of Mehbooba Mufti and her daughter with BJP president Amit Shah at the latter’s residence has went viral, mostly with hate messages.
However, observers say that Mufti’s toughening of stance may be another spell of mind-games to strike a better deal with the BJP. “After the Delhi poll verdict, the BJP’s winning spree and hegemony has hit a roadblock. Mufti is shrewd enough to cash in on this.