A very sorry state of affairs: Mehbooba Mufti on India-China conflict

Srinagar: PDP president Mehbooba Mufti Wednesday described the recent tension between India and China on the border in Arunachal Pradesh as “a very sorry state of affairs” saying it was unfortunate that the BJP was doing nothing about it.

“They have occupied our land in Ladakh. They have also occupied land in Arunachal Pradesh, as per the statement by a BJP MP. But, unfortunately, the BJP is doing nothing about it,” Mufti told reporters here.

“Our soldiers have been beaten by them, they are not allowed to retaliate. This is a very sorry state of affairs,” she said.

The former Jammu & Kashmir Chief Minister said that while the government has no answer to China occupying our land, it was taking away the land allotted on lease to the people in J&K.

“A huge fraud is being committed against the people here. They keep on saying that they are our citizens, inseparable, but are still taking away their land.

“They have no answer to the occupation of our land by China,” she said, when asked about the government’s latest order asking all outgoing lessees to immediately hand over the possession of the land.

Asked about the government's proposal to create unique IDs for families in J-K, Mufti said the Centre wants to keep the people under surveillance as it does not trust them.

“This is the trust deficit they have. They feel the people here are angry with their August 5, 2019 decision of the revocation of Article 370. So, it is part of that chain only.

“They do not trust the people here and want to keep them under surveillance, especially our youth. They want to keep tabs over what the youth say, think, or do. They have created an atmosphere of violence here. They want to suffocate the people here with an iron grip,” she said.

Asked whether the party will participate in the Congress’ ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ when it reaches J-K, as the National Conference has said it would, Mufti said NC president Farooq Abdullah’s participation is a very "good thing" because Rahul Gandhi is doing a good thing for the country.

“He (Gandhi) wants to unite the India which the J-K acceded to – a secular, democratic India whose foundations the BJP is shaking every day. As far as the PDP is concerned, when that day comes, you will get to know it,” she said.

The PDP chief declined to comment over former Congress leader and Democratic Azad Party chief Ghulam Nabi Azad’s remarks that when he was the J-K CM, he had informed then Home Minister Shivraj Patil and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh about the links of some leaders with terrorists.

“Azad sahab will know it better because he was the CM as well as the Home Minister then. Why don’t you ask him,” she said.