Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, July 17: Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed today insisted that he was not hankering for power but had taken the step to “put an end to uncertainty in the State” and change its destiny.
“I have no aspiration for power. This coalition, which I have formed, is not for power,” he said while addressing a function to mark centenary birth celebrations of veteran Congress leader Girdhari Lal Dogra in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“When I joined hands with BJP and when I say it is meeting of North and South pole, it is because I have a dream that the uncertainty will come to an end and a peaceful and conductive environment would be created in the State,” he said.
Mufti Sayeed, who heads PDP and is running a coalition Government with BJP since March 1, said his Government will take necessary steps to “change the destiny of J&K” and will try to “resolve contradictions”.
“I want to say that we will change the destiny of J&K. Former Prime Minister V P Singh (under whom Mufti had served as Home Minister of the country) used to say ‘politics is an art of possibility of managing contradictions’. It is my dream that with the support of everybody, we will try and resolve contradictions,” he declared.
The Chief Minister noted that the integration of Jammu and Kashmir with the rest of the country is of vital importance.
“It is my dream that we want to connect J&K with rest of the country, but we have not been able to connect Jammu with Kashmir. I want to promise to the people of J&K that we want to do justice and end the sense of discrimination in the State.
“We have done justice with all the three regions of J&K —Ladakh, Kashmir and Jammu during my 2002-2005 rule”, he said.
The Chief Minister said he has no lure for power as he has previously been the country’s Home Minister and the Chief Minister of J&K State. He said he dreams of removing differences and bringing the people living in the three regions of the State together.
Praising the political acumen of late Congress leader Girdhari Lal Dogra, Mufti said that the versatile leader always wanted Jammu and Kashmir regions to be together.
“He (Dogra) not only worked as the ruling party leader but also as Leader of the Opposition. When Indira Gandhi lost in 1977, I was with him as President of State Congress and he went from place to place mobilizing the public opinion,” Mufti said.
Dogra had always voiced his support for eliminating any discrimination between Jammu and Kashmir, he added.
While recalling his long association with G. L. Dogra, who was the State’s Finance Minister for 27 years and never lost an election during his illustrious career, the Chief Minister remembered 1959 when GL Dogra joined Democratic National Conference demonstrating true spirit of a leader connected to his people.
Mufti Sayeed said what the State needs today is the same foresightedness of Pt. G. L. Dogra to rise above regional considerations in bringing Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh together. “It is the greatest homage we can pay to his legacy,” he added.
The Chief Minister described him as a statesman who always remained connected with the people at the grassroots level.
“He was a perfect blend of competence, simplicity and honesty and the fact that he never lost an election and was Finance Minister for 27 long years bear testimony to his credentials as one of the greatest political leaders of his times,” he added.
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