Won't tolerate terror: Amit Shah rules out talks with Pakistan

Srinagar, Oct 05: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday dismissed any dialogue with Pakistan and said that the Narendra Modi government will wipe out terrorism from Jammu and Kashmir.

Addressing a rally in Baramulla, Shah asked whether terrorism has ever benefited anyone as it has claimed 42,000 lives in Jammu and Kashmir since the 1990s.

Shah exhorted the security forces and the police to continue with the coordinated efforts through meticulous and well-planned counter-terrorism operations to wipe out terrorism. The agencies concerned should work on improving capacities for ensuring quality investigation. The Terror eco-system comprising elements that aid, abet and sustain the terrorist-separatist campaign to the detriment of the well-being of the common man requires to be completely dismantled, said the Union Home Minister.

Amit Shah also hit out at the families of the Abdullahs (National Conference), Muftis (PDP) and Nehru-Gandhi (Congress) for the alleged underdevelopment of Jammu and Kashmir as they ruled the erstwhile state most of the time since Independence in 1947.

"Some people say we should talk to Pakistan. Why should we talk to Pakistan? We will not talk. We will talk to the people of Baramulla, we will talk to the people of Kashmir," Shah was quoted saying by PTI.

He said the Narendra Modi government does not tolerate terrorism and wants to wipe it out.

"We want to make Jammu and Kashmir the most peaceful place in the country," he said.

Shah said some people often talk about Pakistan, but he wanted to know how many villages in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) have electricity connections.