Examiner Bureau | Srinagar:
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti has sparked a political controversy after her remarks distinguishing police action against protesters in New Delhi and security operations in Kashmir prompted sharp criticism from rival political parties.
Speaking at Jantar Mantar earlier this week, Mufti opposed police action against student protesters in the national capital but said the situation in Kashmir had been different as security forces were combating militancy. Her remarks were widely interpreted by political opponents as a defence of the use of force, including pellet guns, during periods of unrest in the Valley.
The comments drew an immediate response from the ruling National Conference (NC), which accused the former chief minister of attempting to justify the use of force against Kashmiri protesters.
In a post on its official X handle, the NC said: “If you happen to be a Kashmiri who is protesting for his/her rights, ‘aap pe force use karna to banta hai’ (it is justified to use force against you). Wow.”
NC spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar alleged that Mufti’s remarks amounted to branding Kashmiri protesters as militants.
“I am appalled beyond words. @MehboobaMufti unabashedly and casually brands every Kashmiri protester a ‘militant’. The kids, the little girls… just everyone was a militant, she says,” Dar wrote on X.
“Even shame must be ashamed today. Her hypocrisy is uglier than what I believed.”
National Conference leader and Zadibal MLA Tanvir Sadiq also criticised the PDP chief, questioning whether ordinary civil protests were now being equated with militancy.
“Are those who protest against reservation militants? Are those who protest for basic amenities also militants? This is shameful coming from a former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir,” Sadiq said, demanding that Mufti apologise to the people of the Union Territory.
Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari also condemned the remarks, reviving Mufti’s controversial 2016 “milk and toffee” statement made during the unrest following the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani.
“This is, after all, the same leader who justified the killing of Kashmiri children by asking, ‘Kya woh doodh aur toffee lane gaye the?’ (Had those children gone out to fetch milk and toffees?),” Bukhari said.
He further alleged that the use of pellet guns during Mufti’s tenure as chief minister had left hundreds of young people with permanent injuries or loss of eyesight.
“These are painful memories that no amount of political rhetoric can erase,” he said.
The PDP declined to issue an official response to the criticism. However, party leaders, speaking informally, maintained that Mufti’s remarks had been taken out of context and did not reflect support for indiscriminate use of force against civilians.
