Mehbooba Mufti must clear confusion, says Muzaffar Hussain Baig

SRINAGAR: As the quiet dialogue between PDP and BJP to relaunch the alliance in Jammu and Kashmir nearly collapsed, senior PDP leader and parliamentarian Muzaffar Hussain Baig said he is hopeful that the coalition can be stitched back if Mehbooba Mufti clarifies her stand, which has been misunderstood till now.

According to Baig, PDP never set any conditions or demands to form the government, but was just seeking assurances on time-bound implementation of promises made in the Agenda of Alliance — a common minimum programme that the PDP and BJP formed last year to govern the state.

Baig, a founder member of the PDP, who was critical of the implementation of the Agenda of Alliance during the 10-month coalition rule that ended with the death of CM Mufti Sayeed in January, claimed that he had given this “advice” to Mehbooba on last Friday afternoon to which she was “sympathetic”.

However, Baig suspects, the die had been cast by then, as PDP’s clear stand was not communicated to the BJP in time and thus the BJP chose to “go slow on the matter”.

Mehbooba, who was in Delhi, returned to Srinagar on Saturday and is planning to convene a party meeting this week. Her expected meeting with PM Narendra Modi did not happen, perhaps due to PM’s unhappiness over her unexplained conditions and procrastination over government formation.