The separatists in Kashmir are miffed over mainstream political parties’ call for a status quo on Kashmir.
Saying that the borders of Jammu and Kashmir are yet to be defined, Hurriyat conference led by Syed Ali Shah Geelani termed it an attempt to “appease” BJP.
Mufti on Saturday had said that the ” change of borders or exchange of territory is not the solution and there is no alternative to (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee’s reconciliation policy”. A day earlier, National Conference patron Farooq Abdullah too had said that India and Pakistan can’t wrest Kashmir from each other’s control. Abdullah said the Kashmir issue can be resolved if both India and Pakistan give autonomy to Kashmir controlled by then and the borders are made irrelevant by showing free travel and trade across it.
Hurriyat said that Mehbooba Mufti’s statement is a departure from PDP’s self-rule and that the party had not been completely exposed before the people.
“To come in power PDP created the noise of self-rule and advocated resolution of Kashmir in accordance with wishes and aspirations of people,” Hurriyat said. “But now both father (Mufti) and daughter (Mehbooba) have shown their actual face”.
Pro-independent Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front chief Yasin Malik termed the statements of Mehbooba Mufti and Farooq Abdullah as “slave mentality”.
“Ironically two seemingly contradictory minds have spoken in one voice against the freedom of Jammu and Kashmir,” Malik said. “Actually it is not their own statement. Both of them are following the dictation of their masters in Delhi who want to change the discourse on Kashmir”.
