Omar's dialogue offer lacks seriousness: Mehbooba

Opposition People's Democratic Party today flayed Chief Minister Omar Abdullah for his offer to facilitate a dialogue between separatists and the Centre, saying it came after five years of "vitiation of political environment" in Jammu and Kashmir.

"Omar's so-called offer to facilitate dialogue between separatists and the Central government lacks credibility and seriousness.

"In the last five years, his government has subverted all norms of democracy and kept most of the separatist leaders in prison or converted their homes into jails," PDP president Mehbooba Mufti said.

In the process, Omar had further added to the "trust deficit" existing between the state and rest of the country, she told a series of public meetings in Kupwara district.

"Not only he declared a war on all sections of society, especially the youth, ten thousand of whom are facing multiple FIRs, Omar also maligned Kashmiri youths as stone-pelters, drug addicts, Lashkar-e-Taiba workers or paid agents.

"This is not the way to create an atmosphere conducive for fruitful dialogue," Mehbooba said.

Condemning the decision to put hardline separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani under house arrest weeks after he was released, she said the state government had made a mockery of fundamental rights and democratic norms.

The PDP chief asked the people to support a leadership that ensured justice and fair play and was able to get a fair deal for the state from New Delhi, irrespective of the party or formation in power there.