Centre must address 'trust deficit, alienation' in Kashmir: PDP

, May 22: The

&

Peoples Democratic Party (

) on Thursday said the central government should take tangible measures to address the "trust deficit and alienation" in the Kashmir Valley.

PDP leader Tariq Hameed Karra said "no initiative is going to have an impact on the ground without the involvement of the people", so the Centre should take tangible measures to address the trust deficit and alienation in the valley.

Karra, who defeated J&K National Conference president and former Union minister Farooq Abdullah from Srinagar, said this at a thanksgiving meeting in Ganderbal in central Kashmir. He said his party would use Parliament as a forum for debate and dialogue on the Kashmir issue and strive towards seeking a way out for the political and economic issues confronting the state.

"While the overwhelming mandate received by PDP in Lok Sabha polls is a matter of great satisfaction for the party, it has at the same time come with huge responsibilities and enormous expectations," Karra said.

The PDP leader said the renewed trust that the state's people have reposed in democratic institutions offers a fresh opportunity to work through peaceful and reconciliatory means towards addressing all the dimensions of the Kashmir issue in a manner that balances and promotes enduring political and economic stability in the state and the region.

"PDP visualises a space of dignity, opportunity and prosperity for the people of the state in the paradigm of friendship and cooperative relationship between India and Pakistan," he said.

PTI