PDP's J&K poll manifesto released; Mehbooba Mufti criticises 'agenda-less' Congress-NC alliance
Srinagar: People's Democratic Party (PDP) chief and former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday took potshots at the Congress-National Conference (NC) alliance.
During a press conference in Srinagar where she unveiled the PDP manifesto, Mufti said that the NC-Congress alliance was formed solely on the basis of seat-sharing rather than a shared agenda.
She invited the two parties to contest all 90 seats in the Union Territory if they agreed with her party's agenda.
Her party would not join any alliance that is focused solely on dividing seats without a common purpose.
"But the alliance between the NC and Congress is not happening on the agenda. It is happening on seat sharing. We will not do any alliance in which there is only talk of seat sharing. The alliance should be on the agenda and our agenda is to solve the problem of Jammu and Kashmir," she added.
#WATCH | J&K: PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti says, "Alliance and seat sharing are faraway things. If the National Conference and Congress are ready to adopt our agenda, we will say they should contest on all seats, we will follow them because for me solving the problem of Kashmir is… pic.twitter.com/nllk8ld225
— ANI (@ANI) August 24, 2024
Mehbooba Mufti asserted that she was ready to leave all the seats to Congress-NC alliance, if they aligned with the agenda of PDP.
She said that her party seeks the reopening of the route to the Hindu pilgrimage site Sharada Peeth in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (POK) and advocates for dialogue with Pakistan to restore cross-LoC trade, which India halted in 2019 after Pakistan downgraded trade relations following the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.
Resolution Of The Kashmir Issue
— J&K PDP (@jkpdp) August 24, 2024
The People’s Democratic c Party (PDP) remains unwavering in its commitment to
resolving the Kashmir issue, recognizing it as the cornerstone for lifting the people of
Jammu & Kashmir out of the persistent cycle of violence and unrest. pic.twitter.com/dbKn4aXD87
In the 2014 Assembly elections, the BJP and PDP formed a coalition government, with Mufti Mohammad Sayeed as Chief Minister. After Sayeed's death in January 2016, Mehbooba Mufti succeeded him following a brief period of Governor’s Rule.
The BJP withdrew from the PDP-led coalition in June 2018, leading to the Assembly's dissolution by then-Governor Satya Pal Malik in November of that year. Since then, Jammu and Kashmir has been without an Assembly.
During the press conference, Mufti outlined her party's promises if elected, including providing 200 units of free electricity, implementing the old pension scheme, and ensuring free electricity to temples, mosques, and gurdwaras.
She also pledged to increase the honorarium for contractual teachers and offer free legal assistance to those currently imprisoned.
