Despite fears of a last minute breakdown in talks, the BJP and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have reportedly sorted out all difference in their negotiations to form the next government in Jammu and Kashmir and the final seal of approval is expected after Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets with Mufti Mohammad Sayeed on Friday.
A report in Hindustan Times PDP's Mufti Muhammad Sayeed will meet the PM in Delhi today to put a final stamp on the alliance and will also invite him for the swearing-in ceremony, which is likely to take place on 1 March.
The "last minute disagreements were sorted out in a late night meeting," says a report in the Indian Express citing PDP sources.
The two parties have been in a dead-lock over the last months in the negotiations to form the next Jammu and Kashmir government.
The Indian Express report says there will 12 cabinet ministers, 6 from each side and that Mufti will be the CM, while BJP’s Nirmal Singh will be Deputy CM.
The report also notes that there were hitches on some issues, "including the specific offer of dialogue to Hurriyat," and that Mufti said he would only meet the PM "after a 'complete consensus'" had been reached.
Mufti Mohammed Sayeed. AFP
According to the Hindustan Times report, other issues discussed in the alliance framework were "a joint approach on Article 370...accommodating refugees from West Pakistan, talks with separatists and confidence building measures to facilitate dialogue across the border."
Firstpost's Sameer Yasir had reported earlier that PDP had demanded that the BJP, should work towards restoring the original status of Article 370, which gives special status to the region, an assurance that the BJP had not given in writing.
He had also noted that while PDP wanted a full assurance that the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) will be withdrawn, the BJP had instead agreed only to start the process that will pave way for the partial removal of the act.
The army has of course not greeted this news well and senior military officals in Srinagar told Firstpost that Kashmir still isn't ready for the withdrawal of AFSPA.
“Had the situation been completely under control then it would have been to easy to withdraw the act from Srinagar city and some adjoining areas, but it is not. An immediate withdrawal would unnecessary put the lives of soldiers at risk and make them venerable,” a senior army official had said.
Once formally sealed the BJP-PDP alliance will be the first time that the BJP will form a government in the state. While PDP won 28 seats in Kashmir, BJP won 25 seats from the Hindu-majority Jammu region and none in the Muslim areas.
For the PDP, the alliance with BJP has not invoked much confidence from the voters of Kashmir Valley, where there is a feeling of resentment against the latter party.
According to an earlier report PDP's critics took to social networking sites, newspapers and televised debates, warning the PDP that its patriarch, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, will meet the fate of one of Kashmir’s tallest leader, Sheikh Mohammad Abdullah.
“It needs to be pointed out that a PDP-BJP dispensation will not necessarily be ‘historic’ in a positive sense. In fact, it would most likely accentuate the Kashmir-Jammu divide because the state's governance would be predicated on religious identity, not on civic needs,” renowned political historian, Siddiq Wahid, had told Firstpost.
“We voted to keep BJP out of power but the same BJP would rule us now. This is not what we have voted for. This is not why we trusted Mufti saheb. We feel cheated and the PDP will face the consequences of its alliance with BJP in Kashmir in coming years,” Nazir Ahmed Wagay, who lives in Anantnag had said.
However if the BJP-PDP government succeed in bringing stability and development to the area, and don't allow fringe-elements to gain prominence in the region, the government could well change the public perception. Given that the two parties have sorted out their differences on major issue, Jammu and Kashmir is finally going to get a government a good two months after the electoral verdict. How stable it will be, given the animosity between the two parties in the past, remains to be seen.
0 comments:
Post a Comment