Mufti breaks down, says won’t betray people
‘Coalition to continue’
Chief Minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed Wednesday broke down during a meeting with his party’s cabinet colleagues and senior party leaders saying, he would not betray the trust of the people and the coalition government would continue its full term.
Sources privy to the meeting said after receiving inputs from the cabinet ministers of his party at his Fairview residence at Gupkar Road, Mufti broke down saying he would not betray the trust reposed by the people in him.“There is no need to panic and the coalition will continue its full term,” he told his party leaders. “We have to be cooperative with our alliance partners.”
The meeting was held in the backdrop of the recent developments including the High Court’s directive of ensuring ban on sale of beef and the strong stance taken by the Bharatiya Janta Party.
During the hour-long meeting, the chief minister said he was not power hungry but his party had entered into an alliance with the BJP due to a historic necessity.
“We entered into an alliance after giving it a proper thought and weighing all options although we have other options available with us to patch up the numbers,” a source quoted the chief minister as saying.
The sources said Mufti assured his party leaders that the coalition government would deliver development to the people and fulfill their aspirations.
Although none of the party leaders even used the word beef ban during the meeting, the meeting revolved around the tension created between the coalition partners and the political situation resulting due to beef ban controversy in Jammu and Kashmir.
“The government will continue to face small problems and minor hiccups, but there is no need to hit panic buttons,” the sources quoted the chief minister as saying.
Talking to us, senior PDP leader and Minister for Finance, Labour Employment and Culture, Haseeb Drabu said the meeting discussed strengthening of alliance and governance.
“There was no discussion on it,” Drabu said about the beef ban controversy.
After the meeting concluded, Mufti served the party leaders multi-course meat delicacies in the dinner.
Earlier, the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, and former chief minister of Jammu Kashmir, Ghulam Nabi Azad had said his party would bring a bill in the Legislative Assembly regarding the issue of beef ban.
Opposition National Conference (NC) has also moved a bill in the Legislative Assembly for the forthcoming autumn session seeking to decriminalize slaughter of cows and sale and consumption of beef in the State.
MLA Langate and Awami Ittehad Party (AIP) chief, Engineer Abdul Rashid Sheikh has moved a Private Members Bill to delete Section 298 A and B that bans the sale of beef in the State.
He also started a signature campaign in all the districts of Kashmir to build social pressure against the ban on beef.
PDP’s Member of Parliament, Tariq Hameed Karra had said judiciary should not cross the red line.
The HC directive forced people in Kashmir to go for a complete shutdown and prompted calls for mass cow slaughter on Eid-ul-Adha.
However, the slaughter of cows has been witnessing a surge with Hurriyat leaders including Asiya Andrabi and Shabir Ahmad Shah as well as mainstream politicians including Engineer Abdul Rashid Sheikh’s conducting public slaughters of the bovine.
Mirwaiz Qazi Nisar had in 1985 defied Governor Jagmohan Malhotra’s imposition of ban on the slaughter of livestock on Janmashtmi, which paved a way for the creation of Ummat-e-Islamia that in turn cleared the decks for the formation of Muslim United Front (MUF).
And MUF’s participation in the 1987 ‘rigged’ polls culminated in the outbreak of militancy.
