Bhim Singh, a veteran of Jammu & Kashmir politics and the chief patron of National Panthers Party said the move by the BJP to withdraw from J&K government is a stunt to save their face on national level ahead of general elections.
“BJP in J&K has been working as bonded labour under PDP to earn their bread and butter, which they have done,” said Singh, who has been a relentless critic of the state administration and has been calling for its dismissal for years.
“The BJP at the Centre realized the reality and called its ministers in J&K government to Delhi to sign their resignation letters.”
BJP spokesperson Ram Madhav said governor’s rule will be imposed on the state.
Bhim Singh, however, was not willing to write off Mehbooba Mufti that easily.
“The PDP leadership has many options because they have mysterious links with different political groups,” Singh said. “Its leader Mehbooba Mufti is still a Chief Minister and the Governor has not come out with his declaration for the dismissal. May be it happens. The Governor can act only on the advice of the President of India, who is sitting in Rome today.”
Bhim Singh said that both NC & Congress have been working out their own strategy. “We have to wait and watch at least for sometime to wait for the desirable result.”
Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad has already denied the possibility of lending support to the PDP.
However, the Congress Party has been willing to step outside its comfort zone to foil BJP’s designs in the past, as seen most recently in Karnataka where it lent support to JDS despite it being a smaller party.
Bhim Singh also said that the PDP, by giving “a loaf in power to the state BJP leaders from Jammu, have exposed their real commitment towards the welfare of the people of Jammu province.”
“This is going to a waterloo for both PDP & BJP,” the former Congress Party politician added.
Similar sentiments were echoed by members of other political parties, including Sitaram Yechury of the CPIM.
Yechury said this was part of BJP’s preparations for the 2019 elections, adding that the party could attempt to “increase the communal divide” for political gains.
“Now, to create further instability and deepen the feeling of alienation is not in India’s interest,” he said.