Mehbooba in no hurry, adds ‘peace’ to puzzle

Jaswinder Singh Baidwan

Akhran da mureed
Staff member
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Breaking her silence on government formation in Jammu and Kashmir, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti today made it clear that any move forward on forming the government with the BJP was possible only after she was convinced that her father’s dream of peace and reconciliation would be fulfilled.
She said aligning with the BJP was an unpopular decision. “Mufti Saheb believed in peace and reconciliation. He wanted to take J-K out of the trouble that it has faced for most part of its history. It will take me 10 minutes to be the Chief Minister. Unless I am convinced that Mufti Saheb’s dream on peace and reconciliation will be fulfilled, I will not take a call on government formation,” a senior leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) quoted Mehbooba as saying.
This is for the first time that Mehbooba has spelled out her views on government formation after the death of her father and Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on January 7 this year.
She said the late Mufti took a courageous, although unpopular, decision of aligning with the BJP with the hope that the Centre would take decisive measures to address the core political and economic issues concerning J-K and its people.
“The Government of India shall have to take substantive measures towards implementation of the ‘agenda of alliance’ in the interest of peace and stability in J&K and for this, PDP needs a set timeframe to be worked out,” she said.
The meeting was held at Fairview residence at Gupkar here. The four-hour meeting was attended by PDP members of Parliament, former ministers, party legislators from Kashmir province, party functionaries, including general secretaries, coordinators, district and zonal presidents. The only prominent absentee from today’s meeting was MP and senior leader Tariq Karra who was in Delhi. Karra has been against continuation of alliance with the BJP.
In her 45-minute emotional speech, Mehbooba, who has been already authorised by her party to take a call on the government formation, said she was not power hungry and if she got politically consumed in realising her father’s dream she would not mind it. She maintained that regional aspirations and peace and stability should get a priority.
Mehbooba recalled that even on deathbed, her father was keen on peace between India and Pakistan, rehabilitation of flood victims, Pandit issues and young entrepreneurs. The PDP chief referred to nine months of late Mufti’s government and said they had done so much in these months that previous governments failed to do in years. Senior leader and MP Muzzaffar Baig said Mehbooba should be allowed to take a decision on the government formation, but he strongly advocated for the continuation of alliance with the BJP. “The power is for a purpose and that is to fulfil the agenda of Mufti Saheb,” Baig was quoted by a senior party leader.
"It will take me 10 minutes to be CM. Unless I’m convinced that Mufti Saheb’s dream on peace and reconciliation will be fulfilled, I will not take a call on government formation" - Mehbooba Mufti, as quoted by a Senior PDP Leader
 
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