Politics over the movie "The Kashmir Files" has intensified in Jammu and Kashmir as opposition parties have stepped up campaign to expose, what they alleged, "concocted" facts.
A day after Peoples Conference chief Sajad Lone lambasted Vivek Agnihotri for presenting the 'half-truth', Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti charged BJP with promoting the movie to pursue its "divisive" agenda.
"BJP is promoting this movie to incite people on religious lines", Mehbooba said while addressing a rally of party workers at Jammu.
"Atmosphere of hate suits BJP to consolidate its vote bases. Since 2014 we are watching how the BJP is reaping political benefits of the divisive rhetoric", Mehbooba said.
"Except hoodwinking the gullible masses by raking up emotive issues BJP has done nothing to solve basic problems of the people", she said and pointed out every section of the society be it youth, women, working-class, weaker sections, and minorities are bearing brunt of the wrong policies of BJP.
Watch "The Kashmir Files" but not harbour hatred
Interestingly Mehbooba Mufti asked the people to watch the movie but not harbour hatred towards Muslims.
"I have not seen 'The Kashmir Files'. I have heard that the film shows a lot of violence and bloodshed and that it has painful scenes. What happened with the Kashmiri Pandits was horrible. We feel their pain. But you cannot hate every Kashmiri Muslim for the exodus of Pandits," she said.
"We can not blame every Gujarati for Gujarat riots?", she said and emphasized the need of strengthening communal harmony and brotherhood.
What BJP has done for Kashmiri Pandits?, asks Mehbooba
While launching an attack on its former ally over the movie, she said had had BJP done something for the Kashmiri Pandits in the last eight years, then their situation would have been different today.
"Whatever was done for them — employment packages, rehabilitating them in flats after bringing them out of tents (refugee camps), transit accommodation facilities at Vessu, Sheikhpora, Mattan or Tulmulla — all of it was done when Mufti Mohammad Sayeed was the chief minister during the rule of Atal Bihari Vajpayee," she added.
Kashmiri Pandit Sabha takes exception to Farooq Abdullah's statement
A meeting of the Kashmiri Pandit Sabha Jammu was held under the chairmanship of its president K. K. Khosa in which the members have taken serious exception to the statement made by Dr. Farooq Abdullah in which he dubbed "The Kashmir Files" as a bunch of lies and a pure propaganda material created to malign the Kashmiri Muslims in general and the National Conference Government of the time in particular when the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits took place pursuant to their genocide in the year 1989- 1990.
"His vehement argument that he had resigned as Chief Minister on the 18th of January 1990 and that Jagmohan was at the helm of affairs as the Governor is a poor attempt at trying to pass on the buck to the then Government led by V P Singh at the Centre and Governor Jagmohan as against his own culpability in the entire sordid affair", Sabha said.
"He tries to conveniently escape from his own dubious role as Chief Minister from 1987 to January 1990 during which period targeted killings of the Kashmiri Pandits and others had already begun leading to the exodus of the entire community of Kashmiri Pandits to Jammu and beyond", a statement issued by Kashmiri Pandit Sabha stated.
Sabha further alleged that Farooq's own malicious decision of releasing 75 terrorists that gave a spurt to the growth of terrorism was an unpardonable act for which he has to be held accountable.
