Mehbooba asks youth to spread love, friendship

Jammu, Jan 17: Urging the youth to stand up against the challenges faced by the country by spreading love and friendship, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) President Mehbooba Mufti Monday said that there was no need to “get intimidated by the ruling party that is using government agencies to browbeat its opponents”.

Addressing a tribal youth convention of her party here, Mufti said that the arrests and raids by Enforcement Directorate (ED) and other government agencies against the opposition leaders had become the order of the day and the situation in J&K was much worse than the rest of the country.

She said that the youth had a responsibility as the coming generations would question their stand in the face of the BJP’s onslaught on their identity and culture.

Asking people not to be afraid by the BJP’s arm-twisting tactics, Mufti said there was no scope for violence, guns, or stones to achieve the goals.

Meanwhile, she visited the Roop Nagar protest site to meet the victims whose residential houses were dismantled by the Jammu Development Authority (JDA) recently making the families homeless in the harsh weather conditions.

During her visit, Mufti said every government was formed for the poor people but it seemed that this government was anti-poor and bringing big builders in Jammu by evicting marginalised people from their land.

She appealed to the government to return the land to the nomads displaced by the JDA’s demolition drive.