Hurriyat leaders misleading people in the name of `Azadi’ — NC

Naidu said Abdullah had been holding meetings with leaders of various political parties and Chief Ministers to put his views across on the issue, “which he should have done before passing the resolution in Jammu and Kashmir Assembly”.

Abdullah’s statement that the pre-1953 position was not sacrosanct or a "lakshman rekha had a `meaning’", he said.

“We, in the BJP, have clearly stated we are willing to discuss anything and everything in the interest of the country’s unity and integrity. If Kashmir wants special status or devolution of more powers, it can be discussed. But if autonomy means reverting back to the pre-1953 position, it is a big no,” he said, adding that his party would welcome if such meetings would lead to emergence of consensus on the issue.

On Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi’s reported suggestion calling for a meeting of Chief Ministers to discuss the issue, Naidu said the BJP was not averse to the idea.

Abdullah’s NC was a part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and if he wanted a discussion on Kashmir it could be done, the BJP leader said.

To a question on Congress’ charge that the autonomy issue had been “mishandled” by the Vajpayee Government, he said the present situation was the result of Congress party’s “misrule” during the last five decades.

He claimed that the Congress had “no moral or political right” to make such remarks on the issue and that being an opposition party, Congress was opposing it merely for the sake of doing it.

On Shiv Sena leader Bal Thackeray’s possible arrest, he said it was for the Maharashtra Government to respond. However, he criticised the Maharashtra Government for “raking up an issue of 1993”, saying it “only poses new tension”.

Meanwhile, the National Conference has said Hurriyat leaders were misleading the people in the name of `azadi’ and asked them to shun the path of violence and help curb bloodshed.

Senior NC leader and chairman of the State Autonomy Committee Ghulam Mohiuddin Shah said Hurriyat leaders were misleading the people in the name of Azadi, adding “Kashmir will never become Pakistan”.

“The state has witnessed enough bloodshed during the last 10-12 years of militancy and the people are now fed-up and want peace…Let us stop it and usher the state into an era of peace, development and progress,” Shah, who is the State Housing and Urban Development Minister said at a function here yesterday.

He said miseries and sufferings of the people of Kashmir had increased during the demand for “plebiscite”, spearheaded by former chief minister Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah.

Shah said Sheikh Abdullah later realised the futility of plebiscite and joined the mainstream to make a new beginning for development and prosperity of the people of the State.

On the other hand, former Union Home Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed has accused the NC of being a hurdle in resolving the Kashmir crisis and said initiation of an unconditional dialogue was necessary to solve the issue.

“The NC is a bottleneck in any process initiated towards restoring normalcy in the State,” Mufti, who heads the regional J&K Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) said, addressing a gathering at Lalpora-Lolab in frontier district of Kupwara, on Friday.

He said the NC Government had lost its credibility and relevance and miserably failed to mitigate the problems of the people since the last four years.

The Centre has realised that the gun was no solution to the vexed problem of Kashmir, he said, adding the Centre should initiate an unconditional dialogue to solve the impasse.