Mehbooba Mufti slams Modi, says PM getting carried away by party agenda

Jammu, Dec 17: Asserting that Narendra Modi does not have the liberty to get into the agitational and divisive mode for electoral gains, PDP patron Mufti Mohmmad Sayeed on Wednesday said the Prime Minister is being carried away by his party's agenda so much that his responsibilities as the country's premier are getting overlooked completely.

"As a BJP leader nobody can find fault with the attempts by Modi to seek majority anywhere in the country. But it seems he (Modi) is getting carried away by his party's agenda so much that his responsibilities as the Prime Minister of the country are getting overlooked completely," Mufti told an election rally in Rajouri district.

"Ideally no Prime Minister would like to become part of victory or loss in a state election, but since Modi has chosen to be so, it would have been expected of him to refrain from taking the election rhetoric to a level which normally should have been left to his party's state functionaries," he said.

Asserting his resolve to strengthen the inclusive and pluralistic character of Jammu and Kashmir, Mufti said the state is the core component of the idea of India and any attempt at subverting its integrity would be resisted firmly by PDP.

Mufti, referring to the speeches made by Modi in Jammu yesterday, said it was disappointing that the Prime Minister instead of helping build bonds tried to introduce viciously negative discourse into the election campaign.

Mufti: Prime Minister has to be a building force

"Prime Minister has to be a building force. He does not have the liberty to get into the agitational and divisive mode for electoral gains but has the responsibility of building bonds and help resolve issues where they exist," he said.

Mufti said Jammu and Kashmir as the only Muslim majority state of the country is the centrepiece of the idea of India as its accession has lent credibility to our global acknowledgment as a secular democracy.

"Nothing should be done or would be endorsed by a large majority of the people in the country or the state to devalue this asset," he said, adding the state has already suffered too much because of the sub-continent's turbulent political history and they don't want a similar ominous situation to be enforced on them again through divisive politics.

PTI