Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari on Thursday said while New Delhi can decide on whether to hold talks with Pakistan, the Centre should start a dialogue with people of Jammu and Kashmir urgently.
“RSS General Secretary Dattatreya Hosabale’s statement on dialogue with Pakistan and former Army chief Manoj Naravane’s similar views are matters that the central government has to decide based on the prevailing domestic and external scenario,” Bukhari said in a statement here.
The former minister said, however, that there should not be an iota of doubt that the Centre urgently needs to talk to the people of Jammu and Kashmir in order to address their genuine concerns and long-pending grievances.
“I am saying this again and again because I clearly see growing restlessness among the people, especially our youth. People here are grappling with a range of issues that need to be addressed as soon as possible,” he added.
Bukhari said some of the immediate and pressing problems include growing unemployment and, at the same time, the absence of adequate measures for job creation.
“A large number of young people are unable to obtain passports, preventing them from seeking better livelihood opportunities abroad. At the same time, soaring inflation has placed immense pressure on ordinary families,” he said.
Agriculture, horticulture, tourism and industrial sectors, constituting the backbone of Jammu and Kashmir economy, are facing grave challenges that must be addressed urgently, he said.
“Not only large industries but also the MSMEs and small scale industries (SSIs), which sustain thousands of families, are grappling with severe difficulties, and many are either nearly defunct or on the brink of collapse,” he added.
Bukhari said there are a range of other issues that deserve the Centre’s immediate attention.
“These problems are directly affecting the daily lives of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, thereby creating a feeling that everything is not going well here and that the situation cannot be declared normal,” he said. (Agencies)
