Srinagar: People's Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti called the Centre's move in August 2019 an aggression and warned that Kashmiris will fight against aggressors as they did in 1947. She was referring to the attempted Pakistani invasion and Kashmir's response which forced them to flee.
She was speaking at her party's first youth convention post revocation of Jammu and Kashmir's special status. "Kashmiris know how to repel aggressors. We know it. We know it. This is the same Kashmiri that fought aggressors from Pakistan bare handed, and forced them to flee," said the former chief minister.
Mufti accused the BJP of destroying Jammu and Kashmir's unique identity and constitutional arrangement. She said Kashmir had an emotional and constitutional relationship with India but BJP demolished it. "You played with our honour and identity, you destroyed our state."
Speaking about the Centre's actions in the region, she said a massive troop deployment will not make any positive difference. "You can imprison people and kill them. But you cannot imprison an idea. So long as you don't resolve the Kashmir issue, no amount of troop deployment will make a difference."
She also criticised the recent police encounters in the name of hybrid terrorists. "They are killing people on the pretext of being hybrid terrorists. Every day they (police) say that someone is killed in terrorist firing while accompanying them in the operations."
She also slammed the panchayat elections and accused the BJP of hypocrisy. "They took away our Assembly, our constitution, and flag. Then they talk about holding panchayat elections." She also asked the BJP to replicate the same model in every part of India if it is a "real democracy." However, she urged the youth to contest in all spaces. "Be ready to fight every election - panchayat, local bodies, or assembly election. This is the only weapon you can fight with."
She led the BJP-PDP coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir before BJP withdrew its support in June 2018.