Pakistan fishes in the troubled waters of Jammu and Kashmir but they are not the creators of violent unrest in the Kashmir Valley, former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said on Saturday.
Speaking at a Kashmir conclave, the opposition National Conference leader said he was aware that it was popular to blame Pakistan for everything that is happening in the troubled state.
We know that Pakistan fishes in troubled waters, but we also know that they are not the creators of the sort of agitation that we have seen in 2008, 2010 and 2016.
The former union Minister of State for External Affairs was referring to the three deadliest street protests the Kashmir Valley has witnessed in the nearly three-decades of separatist war.
New Delhi has been blaming Islamabad for inciting and sponsoring trouble in Jammu and Kashmir – a charge Pakistan has been denying.
Abdullah said the blame for shrinking space for mainstream polity in Jammu and Kashmir needed to be shared by all, including the central government.
He said ruling Peoples Democratic Party's (PDP) inability to deliver on promises like making peace between India and Pakistan and initiating talks between the central government and separatists has cost the mainstream politicians their credibility in the state.
Abdullah said the case in point was the agenda of alliance between the PDP and Bharatiya Janata Party.
"I think what is important is that we as regional political players understand our limitations. The problem arises when in our desire to attract votes in elections, we sell promises far beyond our ability to deliver.
"It is not within the scope of the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir to decide whether India and Pakistan are going to engage with each other. When we fight election on the promise that we will make peace between India and Pakistan you are setting yourself up for defeat.
"Similarly with the best of intentions, the Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir cannot armtwist the Union of India to engage with the Hurriyat Conference."
(This story has been edited for length.)
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