Jammu: People’s Democratic Party President and former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Mehbooba Mufti Monday said that militancy in the region has witnessed a “sharp rise during BJP rule and youth of Kashmir is preferring to hold gun rather than going to jail”.

She also stated that people want 370 back in Jammu and Kashmir saying “BJP will have to return everything snatched from the people of J&K”.

Talking to media persons at her party office in Jammu, Mehbooba said that Article 370 and other provisions of special status of Jammu and Kashmir were “not meant for Muslims of Kashmiris alone but were for entire Jammu and Kashmir and were indeed brought by Maharaja rule to save the Dogra culture”.

“We want 370 back and they (BJP) will have to return everything snatched from us on August 5, 2019,” Mehbooba Mufti said.

“The darkness that started here post August 5, 2019 has engulfed Jammu also and people here are too much worried with the sequence of events,” she further said.

In reply to a question, Mehbooba said that present government “is following an iron-fist policy and whosoever speaks against them is being pushed to jail”.

She said it was “only because of such highhandedness of government that youth in Kashmir is preferring to hold gun rather than going in jail forcibly and militancy has also witnessed a rise in BJP rule”.

In reply to a question related to her remarks over tricolour, Mehbooba Mufti said that she took oath of both Jammu and Kashmir’s constitution and constitution of India and “will hold both flags together”.

She further suggested government of India to ” learn from foreign policy adopted by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and to restore normalcy on borders with Pakistan where innocent people are drying due to firing”.

“I reiterate the slogan of late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed for opening of more and more border routes on Indo-Pak borders,” she said.

She also said that late Mufti upheld national flag in Jammu and Kashmir at a time when he was socially boycotted.

She, however added that modalities of distribution of tickets for DDC polls under PAGD banner are yet to be finalized. (KNO)

Reader correspondent