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Farooq's alignment with BJP is 'illogical': Mufti Mohammad

Former Union home minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on Wednesday said the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government should initiate dialogue with Kashmiris to end the gun culture in the troubled state.

Sayeed, elected from Jammu and Kashmir's Anantnag on a Congress ticket, said the National Conference government in the state had failed the people. Neither had it ended militancy, nor tackled the problems of unemployment, health and power supply, thus leaving Kashmiris open to exploitation by militants.

As security forces still controlled the majority area in the valley, excesses were bound to occur, Sayeed said.

. He accused Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah of touring the country but seldom being seen within the state. He was trying to be friendly to all ruling parties at the Centre, which was not necessary in a federal set-up. He cited the example of Jyoti Basu's running the West Bengal government, despite a powerful leader like Indira Gandhi at the helm in Delhi.

''The federal structure in India is strong and there is no need to go out of the way to please the ruling party," Sayeed said.

He alleged that Dr Abdullah's alignment with the Bharatiya Janata Party sounded most 'illogical' because that party still had the abrogation of Article 370 on its agenda. His alignment signifies acceptance of his failure to deliver, and a sense of insecurity.

Sayeed described his election to the Lok Sabha as a 'healthy development' in the state -- it was an expression of discontent against the NC.

He said the Congress's rank and file would like to play the role of Opposition in Jammu and Kashmir. He had had talks with party president Sonia Gandhi on strengthening the organisation in the state, and her response was extremely positive.

UNI

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