National Conference President and Member of Parliament from Srinagar, Farooq Abdullah, on Wednesday, while welcoming the “blood of Muslims on Congress hands” remark of senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid, said introspection at the national level was required to initiate reconciliation among communities in the country.
Farooq Abdullah said injustices of the past needed to be acknowledged and cannot be repeated. “Muslims in India have contributed vastly and selflessly towards the progress and integrity of the country but the past is replete with instances where they have been at the receiving end of injustice, inequality and prejudice at the policy level. Salman Khurshid’s statement is introspective and should be welcomed and other political parties at the national level should also acknowledge the injustices of the past so that such mistakes are not repeated in the future,” Abdullah said in a statement.
The National Conference President said inclusivity, respect and dignity should form the cornerstones of a policy outreach towards Muslims in India as also other minorities.
“A sense of dignity and inclusivity needs to be restored, especially in the face of divisive rhetoric and communal ploys as a result of which Muslims are faced with a new challenge of political and economic disempowerment. At regular intervals, various committees were formed to formally analyse the systemic socio-economic disempowerment of minorities in the country, but despite credible and conclusive reports, no significant movement was made towards the path of affirmative action, redressal and closure in the context of various injustices of the past,” Abdullah added.
Farooq said, similarly, the national political leadership – cutting across political and partisan lines – should introspect about the injustices meted out in Jammu and Kashmir and accept the mistakes of the past in order to rectify them.
“There needs to be a consensus at the national level to rise above partisan politics and do justice with Jammu and Kashmir so that the state can be ushered into a corrective era of peace and stability,” Abdullah added.
