Kishtwar clashes: BJP accuses J&K of playing politics

The BJP on Monday charged the Jammu and Kashmir government with playing politics on the Kishtwar riots and cautioned that this was another Pakistan design in which separatist forces were involved.

“The Jammu and Kashmir government is playing bad politics over the issue. It is an anti-India flare-up in which anti-India slogans were raised. The separatists have gone on a rampage. It is yet another Pakistan design. We do not want to inflame the issue,” the BJP spokesperson Prakash Javadekar told reporters outside Parliament House.

He maintained that Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley should have been allowed to visit the riot-affected areas of Kishtwar on Sunday.

Samajwadi Party asked the government to take appropriate action against whoever is involved in the riots.

“The government should find out whether this violence is sponsored by Pakistan or by some political party. The government should act against whoever is involved, be it a political party or some terrorist organisation,” the SP leader Naresh Aggarwal said.

The BJP demanded a discussion and a statement from the government on the issue in Rajya Sabha.

The Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah had on Sunday accused BJP of trying to flare up the situation in Kishtwar to polarise the population with an eye on next year’s general elections and Assembly polls.

Vowing to ensure swift action against those involved in violence that erupted on Friday and appealing to the people not to fall prey to rumours, he had said the government has taken a decision not to allow any political party or leaders -- be it from the mainstream or separatists -- to visit the violence-hit areas as it had the potential of deteriorating the situation.