India
Mehbooba Mufti, ex-chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir not only sympathised with Pakistan at this sensitive hour but she also entered a chorus of a few of her Pakistani friends in deploring India's revenge of the Pulwama terror attack
New Delhi: What Indians consider a proud moment, to be celebrated holding their heads high in face of decades of terror sponsoring by Pakistan and having avenged their fallen heroes, Jammu and Kashmir’s former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti was busy calling her fellow citizens “war mongers” while garnering support for her anti-India rant from Pakistan.
While advocating peace, on the face of it, she was collecting appreciation from Pakistani political class and journalists.
This comes a day after she had brazenly warned the nation against “touching” Article 35A. She had threatened that Kashmiris would change their national loyalties. “Don't play with fire; don't fiddle with Article-35A, else you will see what you haven't seen since 1947, if it's attacked then I don't know which flag people of J&K will be forced to pick up instead of the tricolour,” Mufti had said.
In her first tweet on the Indian Air Force strike across the border and LoC, Mufti seems to be equipoised between India and Pakistan, perhaps torn between the two countries. She hoped that “objective of both sides has been served”, commenting upon Indian “claims” of “pre-dawn strikes carried out by IAF” while it was denied by Pakistan and hence “conflicting reports”.
The former chief minister of the Indian state divorced her state from the rest of India in her tweets further.
“Since Pak has claimed that no casualties were reported despite IAF violating LoC, they should adopt a reconciliatory stand as opposed to further escalation. Or else, an already volatile situation will spiral out of control and as usual Kashmiris will be the biggest casualties,” she tweeted.
Further, answering her admirer Pakistani journalist Mehmal Sarfraz, Mufti said, “How much more will J&K suffer? Kitni der tak hum khamyaza bhugten gay?”
Fatima Bhutto — granddaughter of former Pakistani PM Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and niece of Benazir Bhutto — pontificated in response to one of Mufti’s tweets, forgetting her nation’s complicity in sponsoring terror on Indian soil, about the ugliness of war. Mufti said, “Agree. The only thing worse is disagreeing with war mongers and then being at the receiving end by being asked to prove ones sense of patriotism. In which world does an aversion to senseless bloodshed make you a traitor?”
“Todays IAF strikes were followed by mass war hysteria on twitter & news channels. Most of these people are ignorant who have suspended the use of common sense. But its disconcerting that educated privileged people are cheering on at the prospect of a war. This is true jahaalat,” she tweeted.
In yet another tweet, Mufti said, “Pulwama attacks has undoubtedly vitiated the nation’s atmosphere. People are baying for blood & want revenge. But lets not forget violence begets violence. Having said that in which part of the world does advocating peace and not wanting senseless violence make one a traitor?”
“If my aversion to unnecessary retaliation & subsequent war makes gullible people question my nationalism then so be it. I would rather bat for peace & save lives than sacrifice countless ones just to satisfy collective egos and misplaced sense of pride & patriotism.”
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