Though Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti was expected to start her welcome address on the eve of the inauguration of Chenani-Nashri Channel with the demand for engagement with the separatist leadership but she stung a surprise by starting her welcome address with congratulations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on BJP’s landslide victory in Utter Pradesh assembly elections. Knowing that the selection of a non conventional parliament member and a leading proponent of “Hindu Rashtra” Yogi Adityanath as Chief Minister has shaken the faith of muslims in the intents of the top BJP leaders including the likes of party president Amit Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Though the communal intents of the handpicked non conventional Utter Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Aditynath came to the fore with the decisions of ban on slaughter houses , renaming of “Urdu Bazar” as “Hindi Bazar” and similarity in postures between “Namaz” and “Surya Namskar” but Mehbooba the Chief Minister of the only muslim majority state of the country lost the courage to tell the Prime that her party regrets the misuse of popular mandate for installation of a man of “Hindu Rashtra” ideology as Chief Minister of Utter Pradesh the most populous state of the country where muslims are in majority in 114 assembly segments.
Mehbooba Mufti is the Chief Minister of the only muslim majority state of the country and as such has a moral and political obligation to talk tough against the intolerance of the present BJP leadership toward minorities particularly the muslims.
Beginning her speech by congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi for recent victory in Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti preferred extending gratitude and requesting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for her tourism promotion over requesting the centre for starting dialogue with the youth of Kashmir. Chief Minister of the only muslim majority state of the country boasted of the opening of the largest road tunnel in India that would bridge the distance between Kashmir and Jammu but she did not propose measures for bridging the gapes between the hindus and muslims in rest of India. Having herself experienced the implication of the religious and regional disparities in Jammu & Kashmir the Chief Minister could have delivered very good sermons on religious harmony in rest of India where muslim community is the second largest majority and first largest minority.
Mehbooba Mufti as Chief Minister has been talking very high about the tolerance shown by the kashmiri pundits after their migration to Jammu and other parts of the country but she did not dare to touch the issue of intolerance the present day BJP leadership is showing in imposing ban on beef and triggering a controversial debate for anti muslim legislation on “Talaq” issue. Mehbooba Mufti is the Chief Minister of the only muslim majority state of the country and as such has a moral and political obligation to talk tough against the intolerance of the present BJP leadership toward minorities particularly the muslims.
