Alliance with BJP blackest chapter for PDP: Mufti

Arteev Sharma

Tribune News Service

Jammu, December 27

Former Chief Minister and PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday described her party’s three-year alliance with the BJP as the “blackest chapter which not only harmed the PDP politically but also earned it a bad name”.

She also blamed the BJP for creating obstacles in all major decisions taken by her Cabinet vis-à-vis the development of Jammu that led to the delay of many projects, including the work on the prestigious AIIMS.

“We achieved nothing but a bad name after having a three-year coalition government with the BJP which dented the party’s image politically. It was the blackest chapter in the party’s history,” Mehbooba told senior party leaders while interacting with different deputations from districts of Jammu plains, including Kathua, Samba, Jammu and Reasi, at the party office here.

Winding up her four-day interaction programme with zonal, constituency and districts heads of the PDP, the party president rubbished the accusations of the BJP that the PDP had discriminated against Jammu in terms of development. She said her government had ensured equitable development in the Kashmir and Jammu regions but it was due to the internal fighting in the BJP that some projects could not take off.

“We ensured equitable development in the Jammu region and an equal number of development projects was sanctioned for Kashmir and Jammu regions. But the internal issues between the BJP ministers in my Cabinet stalled these projects. The biggest example of it is AIIMS on which work was not started due to BJP ministers’ internal fighting. Both forest and health ministries were with the BJP. Why did they not resolve all administrative issues in time? It was because of their failure that we could not start the project,” she said.

Meanwhile, the PDP chief asked the party leaders to gear up for the Assembly and parliamentary elections.