Continuing to berate the Centre for being unable to contain the soaring unrest in Kashmir Valley, the Congress on Sunday asserted that the lack of coherence of any policy in the government was actually worsening the situation in the state, adding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was using words like 'insaniyat, Kashmiriyat and jamuriyat' without even knowing their actual meaning.
Commenting on the Prime Minister's reference to the Kashmir unrest in his Mann ki Baat address today, Congress leader Manish Tewari told ANI that the former has been swinging from talking of a dialogue to actually saying that the separatists are of no consequence at all.
"If the Prime Minister believes that only 5 percent of people are creating trouble in Kashmir Valley, then it begs a question as to why the state government and all the resources at the command of the Central government, including the paramilitary forces are not able to get a handle on the situation. He has to understand that the reality in Kashmir is that there are forces that may not be a party of the electoral process, but do have some substantive presence in the ground," he said.
Asserting that an outreach programme does not help since no leaders outside the electoral mainstream are involved in talks, Tewari further said that all aspects needed to be taken into consideration to forge a concrete and lasting solution.
"The Prime Minister unfortunately uses terms that he himself does not understand. Insaniyat, Kashmiriyat and Jamuriyat. The Prime Minister or the Home Minister have not been able to flesh out what these words even mean," he said.
Emphasising that the government needs to get its act together over the Kashmir unrest, the Congress leader stated that all the crucial leaders in the Centre and the Chief Minister were speaking in different voices, adding that, "last Sunday the Finance Minister said that there is no problem in Kashmir and that development is the only issue. Yesterday the JK Chief Minister, who is an ally of the BJP, says that there should be an institutional mechanism to talk to the separatists."
Accusing the Prime Minister of continuously changing his stance on the matter, he added that there is a complete lack of coherence of any policy in the government which is impacting the situation and making it from bad to worse.
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Tewari further said that in the last 50 days, despite Home Minister Rajnath Singh having gone to the violence-hit state twice and Prime Minister Modi delivering 'homilies', the state remains grim and dismal.
Earlier today, expressing regret and remorse over the loss of lives in the Kashmir Valley, Prime Minister Modi said that any life lost in the state, whether of any youth or any security personnel, is India's loss, adding that those instigating young, innocent children will have to answer to them someday.
Addressing the nation during his address in the 23rd edition of his 'Mann ki Baat' programme, Prime Minister Modi said, "Any life lost in Kashmir, whether of any youth or any security personnel, is our own loss. Those who are trying to disrupt peace in Kashmir by instigating innocent young children, they will have to reply to these young children."
Prime Minister Modi had convened an-all party meet on August 12 to discuss the prevailing situation in Jammu and Kashmir. He told attendees that Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir is also part of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Prime Minister added that "there cannot be any compromise on national security, but we have to win the confidence of the people in Jammu and Kashmir.
Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti also met Prime Minister Modi in New Delhi on Saturday and presented a three-point action plan, which includes having a substantive dialogue with separatists and Pakistan, to end the current unrest in the state.
Addressing the media here after her meeting with Prime Minister Modi at his 7,RCR official residence, Mufti asserted that he was extremely concerned about the situation and that he had expressed his desire to stop the bloodshed in the valley and also ensured that the state will emerge from the crisis.
Normal life in the Kashmir Valley remains paralysed as a curfew and a shutdown continued for the 51th consecutive day on Sunday. All educational institutions, shops, public transport and other businesses are closed since July 9.
The death toll in the valley has reached 67, as another youth succumbed to his injuries in clashes that broke out between security forces and the locals in Pulwama district on Friday.