Only PM Modi can solve problems in Kashmir, says CM Mehbooba Mufti

Only Prime Minister Narendra Modi can resolve the problems plaguing Kashmir, chief minister Mehbooba Mufti said on Saturday as her government struggled to keep a lid on increasing violence and bitterness in the Valley.

Amid speculations of the Centre dismissing her administration and imposing Governor's Rule in the state, Mehbooba threw her weight behind Modi and praised the PM for his surprise Christmas visit to Lahore two years ago.

"The prime minister of our country had been given a very strong mandate by the people. I am saying it again and I may be criticised for it but if there is someone, who could find solution to the problem of Jammu and Kashmir, it is Shri Narendra Modi ji and none else," she told a gathering after inaugurating a flyover in Jammu.

"If Jammu and Kashmir has to be bailed out of this quagmire of violence and unrest, it is only the PM Modi ji who can help."

A series of viral videos showing alleged human rights excesses - including a Kashmiri man tied to an army jeep - have ratcheted up the temperature in the Valley as hundreds of people have clashed with police. Nearly 100 people died in similar clashes and stone pelting last year



following the death of top militant Burhan Wani.

Mehbooba met Modi in Delhi last month after the unending cycle of violence, stone-pelting and spike in attacks became a cause of "grave concern" for the central government.

The state government has been criticised for slow response to the growing local anger and many leaders of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party have expressed apprehension about a fast-eroding popular base because of the BJP tie-up.

But on Saturday, the 57-year-old CM backed Modi and said whatever he decided (on Kashmir), the entire country would support him.

"And, perhaps it was this courage and conviction of the PM that within an hour he went to Lahore and met Pakistani Prime Minister (Nawaz Sharif). His visit was a sign of courage and not weakness," she said.

Mehbooba said how Modi's predecessor Manmohan Singh, who was PM for 10 years, also may have had a desire to see his birth home in Pakistan.

"Visiting his home was perhaps an excuse. He, too, probably wanted to resolve issues and remove confrontation with Pakistan so as to bail the state out of unrest and violence. He, however, didn't try," she said.