SRINAGAR: National Conference working president Omar Abdullah today expressed disappointment over the outcome of the All Party Meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying the "refusal" of the Centre to acknowledge the gravity of the situation in Kashmir will flare up the current unrest.
"It is disappointing how the central government had turned its focus on the tried, tested and failed formulations of looking at the issue in Kashmir through the prism of Pakistan and radicalisation," the former Chief Minister said in a statement here.
"The unrest in Kashmir is not because of Pakistan. While suggesting so might be politically expedient and convenient for the Centre, it comes with the unimaginable risk of alienating the people of Kashmir to an irrevocable and irreparable limit. When that limit is breached, no amount of rhetoric or grandstanding will help," he said.
He expressed dismay at the "refusal" of the government to acknowledge the gravity of the situation.
"I am dismayed that New Delhi has yet again refused to acknowledge the gravity of the already volatile situation in the Valley. This will add further fuel to the current unrest," Omar said.
Launching a scathing attack on the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), he accused it of advancing an anti-Kashmir narrative and insulting the Kashmiris.
"Whose interests is PDP trying to serve by distorting the ground reality in Kashmir? Towards what self-serving political goal does PDP want to insult and defame the people of Kashmir?
"Given how PDP has provided the central government with an opportunity to advance an inherently anti-Kashmir narrative, it is not surprising that the All Party Meeting turned out to be a cruel, practical joke with the people of Kashmir," the former Chief Minister said.
He said people expected the Prime Minister to go beyond the "traditional BJP line" of talking to the alienated youth of Kashmir through Pakistan.
He said PDP should know that the political sentiment in Kashmir was neither due to ISIS nor a revival of the Khilafat movement as was alleged by PDP Vice President Muzaffar Baig at the All Party Meet.
"The spurt in local boys most of whom are educated and from affluent backgrounds joining militant ranks has nothing to do with either ISIS nor the revival of the Khilafat movement.
"The root cause of growing alienation in Kashmir is New Delhi's continued refusal to acknowledge that the issue in Kashmir is a political issue and its consequent refusal to engage with the people of Kashmir for a sustainable solution," Omar said.