Jammu, Mar 22 (KNO): National Conference (NC) leader and MLA Hazratbal, Salman Ali Sagar on Saturday called for a debate in the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly on the necessity of dialogue between India and Pakistan for lasting peace in the region.
Speaking during the discussion on grants, Sagar challenged the ruling BJP to account for its role in the region’s turmoil over the past 35 years, while also hitting back at allegations about the NC’s "DNA."
“Why do we talk about dialogue between India and Pakistan? Let’s have a debate on it,” Sagar as per the news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) said, addressing the Assembly. He criticized the BJP for repeatedly questioning the NC’s intentions, saying, “They keep saying there’s something wrong in the DNA of the National Conference. By doing so, they’ve made the DNA of 32 crore people doubtful in the entire country. This is how they generate the rhetoric.”
Sagar pointed out that out of the last 35 years, the BJP ruled at the national level for 17 years, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 10 years and former PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s 5 years. "Let them answer from the front. For what reason and where did the destruction happen?" he asked, urging a detailed discussion on the region’s political history.
The NC leader also highlighted the successes during his party’s rule, particularly the peaceful conduct of the Amarnath Yatra. "When we were in power, the Amarnath Yatra went very peacefully for the majority of the time. Under your [BJP] rule, there were attacks on the Yatra," he said, addressing the BJP.
Sagar accused the BJP of deepening the Hindu-Muslim divide across the country. "The biggest destruction you’ve caused is this Hindu-Muslim divide. If they call it Hindu, it’s Jammu’s Hindu; if they call it Muslim, its Kashmir’s Muslim. You’ve reduced the country’s value to that of a small town," he said.
“In Kashmir, we fight against Pakistan, take bullets, and go to graves. Our workers, ministers, and MLAs have been killed. Millions of Kashmiri Muslims were killed, and no one talks about it. I request a debate. Let everyone see who’s what. It’ll be good for the Assembly and the people of Jammu and Kashmir,” he said.
The demand for a debate comes amid ongoing tensions in the region and renewed calls for dialogue between India and Pakistan to address the long-standing Kashmir issue. Sagar’s remarks have come in the backdrop of his father and veteran NC leader Ali Mohammad Sagar's recent assembly speech in which he asked the BJP to play a vital role in urging the central government to hold dialogue with Pakistan—(KNO)