"If he (stone pelting youth) is giving up his life, he is not doing it for tourism. He is giving his life so that the destiny of this nation is decided which should be acceptable to the people of this place. This needs to be understood," Abdullah said at an election meeting in Sonawar constituency here.
The former chief minister was reacting to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's statement on April 2 at the inauguration of Chenani-Nashri tunnel that the youth of Kashmir need to choose between tourism and terrorism.
"But he is a stone pelter. He has nothing to do with tourism. He will starve to death but he is pelting stones for his nation and there is a need to understand this," Abdullah said.
Abdullah is contesting the bye-election to Srinagar Lok Sabha seat as the joint candidate of opposition National Conference and Congress.
The polling in the constituency will be held on April 9.
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