Srinagar, June 5: Terming the move to keep Jammu and Kashmir out of the new telecom policy as “discriminatory, thoughtless and divisive,” Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Tuesday urged the Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh “to intervene and scrap this diktat.”
Addressing a meeting of the members of Kupwara district committee of the party here party patron Mufti Muhammad Sayeed said such unfair treatment of J&K only “fuels alienation, contributes to trust-deficit and cultivates a feeling of otherness among the people here.” He said it was ironic that J&K should be kept out of a scheme that is christened “one-nation, one-number” when the central government is talking of winning hearts and minds of people here.
“What message are you sending to the people of J&K by such small minded policies?” Mufti asked. He said such actions brought to naught all efforts at bridging the gulf between the state and rest of the country. “By treating the people of the state as suspects in implementation of policies like the telecom policy, the government was actually muddying up the atmosphere of mistrust which reflects often in unwarranted police action against Kashmiris boys in various states,” he remarked.
Mufti said the myopic stance adopted by various elements of state had seriously impeded peace prospects in the past as well. Recalling the resistance faced in extending mobile telephony to the state, he said it was after a great deal of persuasion that J&K got the facility more than a decade after rest of the country, “but now fresh restrictions were leading to reversal of the policy of openness introduced after 2003.” He said mobile facility, contrary to the apprehensions nurtured by security establishments, had helped restoration of normalcy and generating new economic activity in the state.
Not only had the discriminatory policy in telecom a negative impact on political and peace initiatives, Mufti said it had a considerable economic fallout as well. He said while rest of the country will have to pay no roaming charges the people of J&K will have to pay the extra cost for their domicile. Similarly, he said being a tourist hub it can put avoidable burden on those who visit the state for leisure or business. Mufti said even though the central government was wanting in its will and efforts to restore confidence among the people of the state it was heartening that the civil society in the country and people in general had started to respond to the problems faced here. In this connection he welcomed the protests made in Muzaffarnagar against the arrest of two Kashmiri students recently. He said such resonance could pave way for restoration of the rights of J&K with the help of the large majority of people in the country.
In a word of advice to UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, Mufti said the young leader must try to ensure that no innocents are harassed in his state which is home to largest Muslim population in the country.
Addressing the meeting the former deputy chief minister Muzaffar Hussein Baig said PDP was a political force distinctly poised to change rules of the political game in J&K. He said PDP was a party with difference for its political objective, developmental vision and the quality of its leadership.
Senior PDP leaders Tariq Hameed Karra and Muhammad Dillawar Mir and chief spokesperson Naeem Akhtar also addressed the meeting.

Lastupdate on : Tue, 5 Jun 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Tue, 5 Jun 2012 18:30:00 GMT
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