Disagreeing with ally BJP’s assertion that returning of awards by intellectuals over intolerance issue was manufactured, PDP’s Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday said it was infact the “beauty of democracy.”
Disagreeing with ally BJP’s assertion that returning of awards by intellectuals over intolerance issue was manufactured, PDP’s Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday said it was infact the “beauty of democracy.”
Ms Mufti also said that India is a unique nation with unity in diversity as its core strength and some “fringe elements, who combine pseudo Hinduism with nationalism”, lead to the problem. PDP and BJP are the ruling alliance in Jammu and Kashmir. “We should be proud of Indian democracy that we can register our protest like this as well,” the PDP leader said on returning of awards by intellectuals.
When asked about the charge levelled by certain quarters that the return of awards was “manufactured” and not “spontaneous”, she said, “I don’t think so. The award winners are intelligent and can’t be swayed by anyone....This is a message for everyone that intolerance will not yield anything beneficial for the country and that too when we want to move on a path of progress.”
Terming the entire debate on which meat to eat and not to eat as “sickening”, she said “Here we talk about this even when the prices of dal have gone up... All this discourse is sickening. All religions have contributed to India’s growth where Hinduism has taught us to be tolerant, Islam has taught us equality and Christianity shows us compassion.”
On the ISIS, she said the banned terror group was not a threat to Kashmir and the waving of ISIS or Pakistani flags in the Valley was nothing but a publicity stunt. “ISIS does not represent Islam, they are killing Muslims, preaching that atrocities be committed. Islam in Kashmir is different and teaches us to live with neighbours in peace. ISIS will never be a threat to Kashmir,” Ms Mufti said.
