Delhi: Home Minister Rajnath Singh said that the Kashmir issue has been a very old one and a major challenge for all governments and will take time to be resolved, media reports said.
“Modi’s Kashmir policy is correct and there is no doubt in it. The kashmir issue is not a new one, it is very old and it will take time to settle down,” he said while defending Modi government.
He also said the BJP “did its best” and tried everything to bring peace and development to the valley.
Rajnath made these comments in an interview to ‘The Week’ magazine following the BJP’s decision on Tuesday to withdraw its support to the PDP-led government.
On whether he missed former state chief minister and PDP patron Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Rajnath said the late leader was a senior and mature politician.
“But, we should not draw comparisons. She (Mehbooba Mufti) also tried, but it can be a matter of assessment of how successful she has been. The Kashmir problem is a very old one and has been a major challenge for all governments,” he said.
He said “a major factor has been the challenge of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism”.
Asked if he considered the ceasefire a mistake as it turned out to be the bloodiest Eid in the valley in recent years, he said it was not true that big attacks had not happened on Eid in the past.
“I don’t think that the ceasefire was a mistake. It was a well keeping in mind the people who wanted peace in Kashmir,” he said.
He added that security forces were neveer stopped from neutralising the terrorists, who were infiltrating from Pakistan, and the government did not call it a ceasefire. It was suspension of operations for a month, he said.
Rajnath reiterated the government’s stand that it will talk to whoever is willing to talk to it.
“If Pakistan will eradicate terrorism from its soil, we will even talk to them,” he added.
This post was published on June 21, 2018