NCP Chief Sharad Pawar, at a time when the BJP and AAP have locked horns over Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s comments on the movie The Kashmir Files, has accused the BJP of creating a “poisonous atmosphere” by spreading “false propaganda” about the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir Valley.
Addressing a convention of the minorities department of the Delhi unit of his party, the veteran politician said: “Such a film should not have been cleared for screening. But it is given tax concessions and those responsible for keeping the country united are encouraging people to watch the film that stokes anger among people.”
The Congress party had also attacked the BJP over the promotion of the movie. Randeep Surjewala, the GOP’s communication department head, had accused the government of trying to spread hatred in society through the movie.
Kashmiri Pandits did, indeed, have to flee the Valley, Sharad Pawar said. However, he pointed out that Muslims, too, were targeted in a similar manner. “Pakistan-based terror groups were responsible for the attacks on Kashmiri Pandits and Muslims,” he said.
The former union minister said if the Narendra Modi government really cared about Kashmiri Pandits, it should make every effort for their rehabilitation and not stoke anger against minorities.
Pawar also hit back at the saffron party for dragging Jawaharlal Nehru into the debate over Kashmir. He argued that it was V P Singh who was PM when the exodus of Kashmir Pandits began.
“The V P Singh government was backed by the BJP. Mufti Mohammad Sayeed was the home minister and Jagmohan, who later contested the Lok Sabha polls from Delhi as a BJP candidate, was the governor of Jammu and Kashmir,” Pawar said, adding that the then J&K chief minister Farooq Abdullah had quit following differences with Jagmohan and that it was the governor who facilitated the departure of Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley.
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