NC criticises 'Balochistan narrative'

National Conference today criticised the "Balochistan narrative" of the central government, saying India and Pakistan are drifting farther away from each other which does not augur well for Kashmir.
"Today at a time when Kashmir is in dire need of a reconciliatory approach internally and a cooperative approach between India and Pakistan, New Delhi has turned the narrative into a tit-for-tat political point-scoring while the Valley continues to simmer with the fresh spate of killings.
"Both (former Chief Minister) Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and (her daughter and Chief Minister) Mehbooba Mufti had claimed their alliance with the BJP would become a reason for the BJP-led central government to engage in dialogue with Pakistan for the resolution of all outstanding issues, especially the issue of Kashmir.

"Ironically, while PDP continues to be driven by the spoils of political power in the midst of mourning and grief in the valley, New Delhi and Islamabad are drifting farther away from each other than they have at any point in the recent past," NC provincial president Nasir Aslam Wani said in a statement here.
He said the current narrative of hostility and acrimony between New Delhi and Islamabad was "diametrically and dramatically" opposite to what PDP had promised vis-a-vis a sustained dialogue between the two neighbours.
He termed it as a "smoke-screen marketed as an alleged cornerstone of its opportunistic and unholy alliance" with the BJP.

Wani said the same PDP, that had promised to facilitate a dialogue between India and Pakistan, is today led by a Chief Minister who wastes no opportunity to "rebuke and ridicule" Pakistan while endorsing a "hawkish narrative" that comes at a great disadvantage to the people of Jammu and Kashmir.

"What is happening in Kashmir today can be attributed neither to Pakistan nor to radicalization. Mehbooba Mufti is well aware of this reality. That she chooses to lie again and again to distort the narrative is a reflection on her lack of integrity and honesty," the NC leader said.
"It's tragic that New Delhi is being encouraged by its alliance partner the PDP to talk about Balochistan rather than address the current unrest in Kashmir that has resulted in the loss of more than 60 young lives till now," he said.

Wani said, "The spectre of brutality and strife continues while the Prime Minister, cushioned by a pliant and apologetic Chief Minister in Srinagar chooses to look westward towards Balochistan rather than show empathy and solidarity towards Kashmir."
Expressing profound grief and sorrow over the fresh spate of killings in the Valley, the NC leader expressed alarm over the worsening situation and said both the central and state governments cannot absolve themselves of their responsibility to the prevent loss of lives and address the growing alienation.