Facebook post triggers political feud in J&K

A war of words has broken out between ruling National Conference and Opposition People's Democratic Party in Jammu and Kashmir over posting of pictures on a networking site, caricaturing Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, his father Farooq Abdullah and late grandfather Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah as characters of the film 3 Idiots.

While the NC has accused Mehbooba Mufti of circulating an SMS asking recipients to check the photograph on Facebook, the PDP chief has denied the charge.

The SMS read: "someone posted three idiots on Facebook. Three Abdullahs! Such hatred and anger that could consume everyone".

State Finance Minister Abdullah Rahim Rahter quoted a media report, which claimed that Mehbooba had received the SMS and forwarded it to some friends.

Charging Mehbooba with circulating the SMS to sully the image of Abdullah family, Rahter demanded an "unqualified apology" from her.

Mehbooba, on the other hand, asked NC not to make a big issue

out of it and said instead the ruling party should concentrate on governance.

Addressing a press conference, Mehbooba said she has not created any post or SMS and "not seen this post till now".

"We receive hundreds of SMSs daily and forward some of them. What is this? People create caricatures of politicians -good or bad. Why to make an issue out of it," she asked.

Lashing out at NC for dragging the name of their leader Sheikh Abdullah to "hide failure on all fronts", Mehbooba said there is no question of tendering an apology.

"They can create it themselves to get sympathy of the public. We have nothing to do with it. From deteriorating law and order situation in Kashmir, Baramulla infant incident to clashes in Patan and Sopore, they blame all on PDP," she charged.

"The look and make issue of the SMS is unfortunate. Why don't they realise Kashmir is burning. There is high alienation among people. There is high expectation. They have failed to deliver," the PDP leader said.