Parties vying for fragmenting votes in the valley: PDP

The Peoples Democratic Party today accused Omar Abdullah-led NC government of losing the regional character and being reduced to a "mere tool of fragmentation of votes" in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
"The NC has not only transformed itself into an available appendage for sharing power either with Congress or BJP but it has reduced itself to a mere tool of fragmentation and division of votes," PDP president Mehbooba Mufti said today while addressing roadside meetings at Bandipora and Sonawari.
The PDP leader stated that the ruling National Conference has done serious damage to its popularity over the years and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah's current tenure reflects the proverbial 'straw that broke the camel's back'.

"The popular base of the National Conference as an organization has now drastically shrunk. It now comprises of a group of individual leaders who are trying to survive in politics under a banner that has become a liability for them," she said.
Mehbooba said that the ruling party, which for a long time had been a dominant political force in the state has lost its clout among the people because of its repeated sellouts and compromises which it kept on doing for the sake of power.
"In spite of the overwhelming mandate and support of the people it used to get over the decades, the NC always failed to identity itself with the people and instead considered them its slaves who will anytime help it to grab power," she said.

NC got a slim lead in only six assembly segments in this year's Lok Sabha polls. The party along with some other smaller groups are being kept alive to serve the purpose of certain forces in dividing the votes in the Kashmir Valley, so that a united voice doesn't emerge from here, she said.
Hitting out at RSS and BJP, Mehbooba said that "both the forces are trying to implement their sinister agenda of saffronising Jammu and Kashmir by consolidating the votes of one community and fragmenting the other".
"This is a very dangerous game and, willingly or unwillingly, the NC and some other elements are becoming partners in this intrigue against the distinct pluralistic identity of the state," she added.