Mainstream political parties in Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday united in their criticism of Director General of Police (DGP) R R Swain's recent remark that regional outfits are collaborating with terror leaders for "political gains".
While PDP president Mehbooba Mufti demanded Swain's dismissal, the National Conference (NC) and the People's Conference slammed the police chief's comment as inappropriate and insulting to the sacrifices made by their party workers.
Swain claimed on Monday that Pakistan infiltrated all aspects of civil society in Jammu and Kashmir during the peak of militancy and that regional parties had cultivated terror leaders for political benefits.
The NC highlighted its sacrifices for the country and condemned Swain's statement, with its Kashmir zone chief Nasir Sogami citing the examples of Maqbool Sherwani and Mohammed Yusuf Halwai.
"By making this statement, the DGP has insulted the great sacrifices of National Conference leaders like Maqbool Sherwani, who kept misguiding Pakistani raiders for two days to facilitate the Indian Army's landing in Kashmir in 1948, as well as that of Mohammed Yusuf Halwai, who refused to follow the diktats for a blackout by terror groups on Independence Day in 1989," Sogami said.
He added that over 3,000 NC leaders have laid down their lives for the country's integrity.
"There is sometimes a possibility of a black sheep in political parties, but that is true for police and other security agencies as well. But these are exceptions, and exceptions can never be definitions," the NC leader said, adding that "such frivolous statements only undermine the sacrifices of the people and help our enemy across the border".
Demanding Swain's removal, Mufti also expressed concerns over the increasing casualties among young Army officers in the region. She accused the DGP of treating local people like "Pakistanis".
The PDP chief sought accountability for the "loss of 50 soldiers in the past 32 months" in terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, saying "heads should have rolled by now" and the DGP should have been sacked.
"Unfortunately, there is no accountability...," she told reporters here.
Other political parties too condemned the loss of brave soldiers and regretted that there was no accountability.
"The incumbent DGP is more busy fixing things politically. He is more into how to crush the PDP and harass the people," Mufti claimed.
Leaders of the Congress, CPI(M) and the People's Conference condemned Swain's statement, urging him to focus on his professional duties and avoid political commentary.
"It does not behove a senior officer holding the post of the Jammu and Kashmir DGP to make such an irresponsible statement. Political parties have played their positive role in the recent Lok Sabha election in ensuring people's participation in the interest of democracy and the constitution," Senior Congress leader Ghulam Ahmad Mir said.
Senior CPI(M) leader M Y Tarigami said the DGP should "limit himself to his own status". "He is a professional officer and he should confine himself within that range. He should not indulge in politics... This is how the governance system of our country is designed to work," he said.
People's Conference president Sajad Lone called the DGP's remarks an indication of "disdain and contempt" for democracy.
"The comment made by the DG J and K police pertaining to mainstream parties is inappropriate to say the least. Even in a basic, rudimentary functioning democracy such utterances by a serving police officer would not have been tolerated.
"Such statements by serving officers are an indication of the disdain and contempt for anything remotely pertaining to democracy. Such a sad state of affairs and even sadder is the fact that the script writers of this sad state of affairs take pride in having brought J and K to this level," Lone posted on 'X'.
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