Leader of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti on Monday accused the Omar Abdullah-led Jammu and Kashmir Government of handing out selective compensation to the victims of the Kishtwar clashes, and said that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference had joined hands to use the incident to play politics. To substantiate her allegation, she recalled that during the 2002 riots in Gujarat Omar Abdullah and his father Farooq Abdullah did not resign and remained in the NDA.
She also stated that when Omar Abdullah called an All Party Meeting in New Delhi on Monday afternoon, she was upset as she, the main opposition in the state, was not informed about it in a ‘timely manner.’ “If Omar Abdullah was serious (about the All Party Meeting) and take us on-board for our contribution, he could have delayed the meeting to 4 p.m. so that we could attend.
Instead, we weren’t even informed till 11:30 a.m. today morning. …If this accountability had come earlier, things in Jammu and Kashmir would be very different,” Mufti added. Curfew continued to be in force in Kishtwar town on Monday due to prevailing tension in the wake of last week”s communal clashes.
Educational institutions have been shut across the state and mobile internet services blocked after clashes took a turn for the worse on Sunday. Apart from Kishtwar, seven other districts are under curfew, including Jammu and Rajouri, following acts of arson and violence. Army personnel continue to patrol key areas to maintain law and order. Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has ordered a judicial probe into the clashes, which has claimed the lives of three persons so far. (ANI)