BJP, RSS will sink in game of communal politics: Farooq Abdullah

National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah today said the BJP and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) would “sink” in the “game” of “communal politics” played by its leaders.

“If anybody is playing communal politics today….the BJP is playing, RSS is playing. We have never played this game. They are playing and they will sink in this game,” Farooq told reporters on the sidelines of a function held here to pay tributes to JKNC founder Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah on his 38th death anniversary.

He said this when asked for comments over BJP national general secretary Ram Madhav’s recent remarks that the “Gupkar leaders are resorting to that dangerous game once again, this time in the name of Islam”. Madhav had made the remarks in a write-up that appeared in a local daily.

Over a year after the stripping of the J&K’s special status, six main political parties, including the JKNC, PDP and the Congress had on August 22 announced that they stood by the “Gupkar declaration” and would jointly fight for the restoration of Article 370.

Farooq maintained that the JKNC had always remained secular in character.”The National Conference has never run politics in the name of religion. Never….it is our history. What was the slogan of Sher-e-Kashmir (Sheikh Abdullah) – “Sher-e- Kashmir ka kya irshaad? Hindu, Muslim, Sikh itehad (unity)”. Wasn’t it? And he turned the Muslim Conference into National Conference because he knew all were involved in it. In suffering and in poverty…there are Hindus also, Muslims also, Sikhs also, Buddhists also and Christians are also there. Then how did we become communal today?” he said.

Other JKNC leaders, including party vice-president Omar Abdullah, also paid tributes at the grave of Sheikh Abdullah at Naseem Bagh on the banks of Dal Lake.