Farooq Abdullah defends stone-pelters

Srinagar: National Conference president Farooq Abdullah has said that the upcoming by-polls for Srinagar and Anantnag Lok Sabha seats presented “a historic opportunity to fight against the wave of tyranny, majoritanism and fascism sweeping across the country”.

He was also quoted by news agency PTI as saying that those who pelt stones are fighting for the nation, and have nothing to do with tourism.

“Our fight is against those people who want to divide us on the basis of religion. I want to tell Modi Sahib (PM Narendra Modi) that tourism is our life, no doubt about that, but a stone-pelter has nothing to do with tourism,” Mr Abdullah told PTI.

“They (stone-pelters) will risk starvation, but will throw stones for the nation. That’s what we need to understand,” he said. Mr Abdullah, while addressing rallies, said Kashmir’s very survival was at stake and this was “our collective moment of reckoning in a battle of dignity, honour and prestige”. “This is no ordinary election where two parties contest against each other based on their particular ideologies. This election is a war of survival between fascism and dignity — between BJP’s cultural and tyrannical onslaught on one end and Kashmir’s collective honour and prestige on the other end,” he said.

He said the PDP’s alliance with the BJP brought the state at the crossroads of political suppression.

Mr Abdullah also said that shunning bilateral dialogue adds weight to argument for mediation and that New Delhi “cannot remain invested in the status-quo” on Kashmir.

He was reacting to India rejecting third party mediation on the Kashmir issue. “New Delhi and Islamabad’s failure to engage with each other bilaterally over the years had added weight to the argument for international mediation,” he said.

“New Delhi cannot remain invested in the status quo on the Kashmir issue and all possible methods of engagement and facilitation could be explored in the quest for a lasting resolution,” he told reporters.