Mehbooba’s remarks on ‘state flag’ reflect feelings of an average Kashmiri: Soz

25/10/2020

SRINAGAR, Oct 24: Former Union Minister Prof. Saifuddin Soz on Saturday seconded PDP president Mehbooba Mufti, saying that her remarks on 'state flag' reflected the feelings of an average Kashmiri.
"Mehbooba Mufti has reflected the feelings of an average Kashmiri by saying that she will not hold
tricolor till the State's flag is restored with the status of the State," Soz said, in a statement.
"The question is as to what does the Union expect from the beleaguered people of Kashmir who are determined to continue their struggle for restoration of the special status.
That the Modi Govt. has internationalized Kashmir issue once again is an obvious fact. It is not for nothing that the world famous intellectuals like Noam Chomsky of America and Johan Galtung of Spain have raised their voice against the treatment meted out to Kashmir by the Modi Govt. Both these high ranking intellectuals have said that Kashmir has been rendered into a prison with the entire population there as prisoners".
"So, it cannot be business as usual in Kashmir after abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution of India!"
Today or tomorrow, Soz added, the abrogated Article 370 or its exact equivalent shall have to be restored.
"Otherwise, the constitutional relationship between the State and the Union would continue to remain a flawed situation," he said. However, asking Mehbooba to desist from making highly provocative and irresponsible remarks on the national flag, the Congress unit in the Union Territory on Saturday strongly condemned the PDP chief's statement on the tricolour.
Reacting to Mufti's statement on the national flag, Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Comm-ittee (JKPCC) chief spokes-person Ravinder Sharma said it is highly provocative and irresponsible, and she has hurt the patriotic sentiments of people.
"Such statements are intolerable and unacceptable in any society," he said.
Sharma said the national flag is the symbol of the honour and dignity of the country and reminds people of the sacrifices of crores of Indians to achieve freedom and protect the country's dignity, honour and territorial integrity.
"She should desist from making such outrageous utterances to hurt the sentiments of every Indian," the Congress leader said.
In her first media interaction after her release from 14 months of detention, Mufti on Friday said she would hold the tricolour only when the separate flag of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir would be restored.
"As far as I am concerned, I have no interest in elections. Till the time the Constitution under which I used to contest elections is returned to us, Mehbooba Mufti has got nothing to do with elections, let me tell you that," she said.
In an act seen as defiance, the flag of the erstwhile state was prominently placed on a table in front of the PDP president, along with the flag of her party, during the press conference. It was for the first time that the PDP displayed the flag of the erstwhile state at a party function or a presser.

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