Appealing for calm in the wake of the desecration of a temple in Jammu city by a "mentally disturbed" person last evening, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today said she does not want the state to be "hijacked" by extremist forces.
"Jammu and Kashmir is the most secular place and I don't want it to be hijacked by extremist forces," Mehbooba said while addressing a function at Jammu University today.
She said some elements were "hell-bent" on creating communal tension in the region but the people of Jammu, irrespective of their religion, must unite and fight the nefarious designs of such forces.
"Separatism and communalism are the two faces of a same coin and they ultimately divide the society and the country," she said.
An ancient temple situated in Roop Nagar area of Jammu was desecrated by a "mentally disturbed" person yesterday, triggering protests across the city.
Protestors had last night set three vehicles on fire and clashed with police after the news spread.
Authorities have suspended mobile internet services in Jammu region as a precautionary measure.
Mehbooba said time and again the people of Jammu have shown their secular credentials and it was evident from the fact that the region gave refuge to people who came there while fleeing from militancy-hit areas.
"In 1990, people of Jammu opened their doors for the people who escaped militancy and took refuge here. Jammu has always been a shining example of secular harmony," she said.
She said that it was the people of Jammu who voted her father to the Legislative Assembly for the first time in 1985.
"It was the secular character of Jammu that they elected my father, a Muslim from Kashmir, from R S Pura," she said.
The Chief Minister warned that communal politics in Jammu region could have a disastrous effect as the state was already facing separatism in the Kashmir valley.
She appealed to students to play a positive role and get involved in political activities, but at the same time cautioned them against politics of religion.
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Praise for Vajpayee and his Kashmir policy dominated the 25-minute speech of the Chief Minister at the seminar which was moderated by the state's Governor N N Vohra.
"Terrorism is the biggest threat that the whole world is facing but unfortunately the countries which are fighting terrorism are not fighting it together," she said, adding "there is shadow boxing going on between the various super powers to get the hegemony over the world," Mufti said.
By way of explanation, she spoke about China blocking India's attempts to name Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar a global terrorist under a UN convention.
"I will come to my own country. And we have been facing terrorism and there is again this kind of shadow boxing that is going on between us, China and Pakistan and so and so.
"We have been trying so hard for so many years to declare certain people, certain groups who have really inflicted a lot of pain on us as wanted terrorist but again China comes to the rescue," she said without naming Azhar, blamed for many terrorist attacks in India.
Speaking about the importance of good governance, she said governance alone cannot fight terrorism because it is the first causality of terrorism.
"When your whole energy which is focused on development and good governance, it gets focused on maintaining law and order, saving the life and property of people becomes your first and foremost duty. And unfortunately governance goes for a toss," she said and advocated a multi-pronged strategy which included fighting terrorism and redressing the grievances of people.
Speaking about Vajpayee's policy, she said the former Prime Minister understood the pain of the people and tried to address both internal and external dimension.
Mufti said the "enemies of peace" attempted to sabotage his efforts in various ways, including the Kargil intrusion and Parliament attack.
"But ultimately he once again gave a message to Pakistan from the very soil of Kashmir, in the same language that Kashmiris understood, by quoting our saints and poets like Nund Resh, Lal Ded and Mehjoor.
"Vajpayee's extending of hand of friendship was reciprocated from the other side. We had a ceasefire that lasted for many many years. We had a dialogue process," she said.
She also favoured opening of new routes between the two countries and asked India to respond to Pakistan's offer for joining the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).
"Why can't we be partners to the CPEC? Jammu and Kashmir was a gateway to central Asia before 1947. Why should not our country benefit out of that. I heard that Pakistan has offered to us to be part of the CPEC. Why can't we do that? Why can't we move away from the skirmishes that we have all the time," she said.
