PDP, NC on same page over 35A: Mufti

Arun Joshi

Tribune News Service

Jammu, November 21

PDP president and former Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Wednesday said the prevailing situation in Kashmir made her party and the National Conference (NC) to think about an alliance. She also defended the decision of someone else leading the next government.

Mehbooba made these comments before the Legislative Assembly was dissolved by Governor Satya Pal Malik on Wednesday evening.

Talking to The Tribune over the phone, the PDP president, who had been discussing the issue with Congress and NC leaders over the past few weeks, said: “This alliance is born out of necessity to “safeguard the interests of the state”, particularly in reference to Article 35A of the Constitution that confers special rights and privileges to the permanent residents of the state.”

“Nobody was taking the issue seriously. The date of the hearing (January next year) is drawing closer and the Governor’s administration was doing nothing to defend it. In our times, we had hired prominent constitutional experts to defend the Article in the Supreme Court, but now it appeared that things were being taken casually,” she added.

“As conscious people and responsible parties, we thought of playing a role and that’s what made us think and act in a similar fashion. This alliance is a result of that,” she said, adding: “The other concern was the way the BJP was trying to poach lawmakers of other parties, thus attempting to destroy the democratic set-up for which the mainstream in Kashmir had given so many sacrifices.”

Mehbooba confirmed that she had met NC leader and former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and had a threadbare discussion on all these issues. “We are on the same page that democracy and constitutionally guaranteed special status has to be preserved.” I just met Omar, not Farooq Abdullah,” she added.

When asked about her take on not becoming the Chief Minister again, Mehbooba replied, “I cannot be heading the government all the time. There are other party leaders, who are quite capable and talented to lead it. Their talent needs to be recognised.”

Mehbooba said in future, her role would be to work for the “people of the state at all levels”.