Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) patron Muzaffar Hussain Baigh on Thursday took potshots at jailed party president Mehbooba Mufti and backed the demands to restore statehood and grant domicile laws on land and jobs.
“Ms. Mufti made a wrong statement that ‘If Article 370 is scrapped no one will raise the national flag in J&K’. It should not have been made. You cannot threaten Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to get your demands fulfilled,” said Mr. Baigh at a press conference here.
He said the PM, the HM and the NSA understand the people of J&K and “were not anti-Muslims”. “Statehood as promised by them should be restored. For the last five months, no bullet has been fired in Kashmir even as shops remained closed. If we are thinking that China and Pakistan will leave the occupied J&K land and then, we will restore statehood, then we don’t think there are chances of getting it back,” he said.
The former J&K Dy. CM said the recent changes in J&K “have worried ethnic and cultural communities irrespective of communities i.e. Dogra, Sikh, Gujjar, Pahari, Kashmiri”.
“Excluding IAS-IPS jobs, local people should get the right of jobs including gazetted and non-gazetted since J&K is also a hilly State like the northeast. India understands the sentiments of people and recently asked the High Court to withdraw the job advertisement,” he said.
He also blamed the Hurriyat for the current situation. “Hurriyat in 2016 closed their doors and did not hold talks with the delegation of parliamentarians, who had come to Kashmir for dialogue. Perhaps this prepared the ground and the special status was scrapped by the BJP.”
He also demanded the release of all mainstream leaders.
