Mourning period for Mufti ends

As the four-day mourning period for Mufti Mohammad Sayeed came to an end, special prayers were held today by PDP in his memory at a function where party leaders expressed their support to Mehbooba Mufti who is tipped to succeed her father as Chief Minister.
Several party leaders spoke briefly at the function, said one of the participating leaders.
"The speakers expressed their support for the PDP president saying they will stand by whatever decision she takes on the future political course of action," he said.
The PDP leader, however, insisted that no meeting of the Legislature party had taken place.

"There has been no meeting of the Legislature party yet. So the question of electing the Legislature party leader does not arise," he added.
With the mourning period over, political activity for government formation is expected to gather pace now.

The state was brought under Governor's Rule with effect from January 8 -- a day after Sayeed's death -- as allies PDP and BJP failed to stake claim for government formation in view of the four-day mourning for the departed leader.
She asked people to remain cautious and help the
government establish peace in the state.
"Now, they are saying that some sheds will be constructed. The labour laws state that a labourer has to be given some shelter to save him from rains if he is working for a longer time. It's not necessary the labourers are from outside. We've not done anything yet, but they created noise," she said.

"I feel that you have to remain cautious, especially those associated with tourism sector because strikes or other things everyday does not affect us because we get salaries even if we sit home. Our children study in colleges and universities outside, but it is you who have to take care of Kashmir. If you help us, we will establish peace here and that too not by holding white flag, but with honour," Mehbooba said.
She appealed the youth of Kashmir to become "real torch-bearers" of Islam.
"Friday is a very blessed day for us. But if you see today any dignified person will think ten times whether to go for prayers. We have to see where we have taken Islam to," she said, referring to stone-pelting protests which take place usually on Friday in downtown Srinagar.

"I appeal the youth to become real torch-bearers of Islam whose image is being distorted. Cooperate with us. The ideology is a separate thing, if we do not agree with someone. But we should not defame ourselves by having that ideology in such a way that people call us bad," she said.
"We should create such an atmosphere that the world talks about us in a good way. But when we pelt stones, tourist or yatri or even our own people can be injured, bullets would be fired. Then who will come here," she said.
Mehbooba said that ever since PDP was formed, its aim was

to make Jammu and Kashmir a bridge of friendship and peace between India and Pakistan but it has become a battleground.
Peace is possible only when the relations of both the countries are good, the Chief Minister added.
She said that despite several provocations, former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee had gone ahead with his peace initiatives. She was apparently referring to Kargil aggression by Pakistan and attack on Parliament by Pakistan-based terror groups.
"Modi ji told me that he wishes his Pakistani counterpart on his birthday and even wished him speedy recovery during his surgery, but it was followed by Pathankot and Uri (terror attacks)", she said.

She said in a democracy, political parties question how these attacks happen but "I feel that the situation could not remain the same and slowly the situation would become normal".
Both the countries have no other option but to hold dialogue, Mehbooba underscored and added that solution to all the problems is there in the Agenda of Alliance.
She complimented BJP ministers for thwarting the designs of those elements who wanted to spoil the atmosphere in Jammu region.
BJP and PDP have different ideologies but in Agenda of Alliance, both have agreed to maintain status quo on the issue of Article 370, Mehbooba said.

The Sagir Committee and the working groups have also said that unless the people of Jammu and Kashmir don't want, there should be status quo on Article 370, she said.
"Agenda of Alliance would facilitate dialogue, transfer of power projects, and revocation of AFSFA at some point in time," she said.
"Whatever you call it, holy or unholy alliance, but this alliance has a holy document which is Agenda of Alliance. It is a golden opportunity for all the political parties to help us implement this Agenda of Alliance," she said.
She said she hopes to take Kashmir out of the mess.

She also said that some people say that since the alliance was formed, people in Jammu feel insecure. "But I am proud that people of Jammu as when the schools in Kashmir were closed, thousands of students from Kashmir came to Jammu and took admission here. They feel more secure here as compared to the unrest in Kashmir," she said.
The Chief Minister also questioned why the issues related to rehabilitation of Pakistan Refugees or Kashmiri Pandits were being raked up.
She said the government of India was serious in providing livelihood to the West Pakistan refugees by absorbing them in central forces.