SRINAGAR: Kashmir’s main opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has said it is disappointed with the Legislative Assembly speaker for sending a notice to former Indian Army chief.
Instead, the PDD said, the speaker should have summoned General V.K. Singh, under fire over comments about pay-offs to ministers in the state.
In a statement, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti said the “U-turn” by the speaker on this sensitive subject has in no way added to the prestige of the house, the restoration of which was the focus of the discussion on Singh’s expose about the pay offs to politicians.
Ms Mufti said the speaker has clearly followed National Conference’s “traditional double speak” and has tried to pursue the party diktat rather than implement his own ruling.
The speaker, Mubarak Gul on Thursday issued a notice to Gen Singh who had told a Delhi-based news channel that Army making payments to ministers in the state had been going on since 1947.
The Assembly had earlier passed a one-line resolution demanding that Gen Singh explain his comments.
Mehbooba said “the inability of the NC and the authorities associated with it to stand by the interests of the state and make compromises for petty political intrests has been a major reason for the problems of the state”.
“One of which is the fact that the politicians in the state have been treated as a commodity who can be sold and bought.”
Reiterating her party’s demand that General Singh be summoned before the bar of the house to know the truth about his statements, Ms Mufti said “heavens would not fall if a former General was asked to appear before the highest seat of democracy”.
