Prisoners’ release on hold

So when PDP leader Mehbooba Mufti, as CM Mufti Mohammad Sayeed’s emissary, met Manmohan Singh on Friday the Congress explained its constraints. PDP sources said the party would not do anything that may embarrass or harm the Congress in Gujarat.

Sources said Mehbooba also had to do a lot of explaining to PM Vajpayee and Deputy PM L.K. Advani on the state government’s policy to release prisoners. She reportedly tried to dispell the growing skepticism in the Centre about Mufti’s ‘‘liberal’’ policy.

PDP sources said Mehbooba had assured both the leaders that ‘‘since their government had promised to restore peace in Kashmir they could not afford to release anyone who would jeopardise the peace process’’.

The PDP government has also committed to the Centre that all releases in Kashmir will be done in consultation with central agencies such as the Intelligence Bureau, Army and BSF.

Mehbooba asked the Central leaders for a package to sustain the Mufti government’s project to improve power supply. The state has been running gas turbines at an additional cost of Rs 1 crore a day since it came to power. Mehbooba justified the ‘‘expenditure’’ as a goodwill gesture. ‘‘Please treat the expenditure on power as important as that on security,’’ she reportedly told Advani.