National Conference Chief Spokesperson Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi on Friday that PDP-led government was making concerted efforts to divide the state on regional and communal lines.“Since the inception of the PDP-BJP Government led by Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, the National Conference has time and again warned about a concerted effort being made to divide the state on regional and communal lines. The abject failure of the Mufti Government to place a cogent response to a PIL filed in the High Court, is either an act of gross incompetence or worse still part of a sinister plan,” he said in a statement issued to KNS.He said that the High Court order regarding ban on beef has given rise to the “present explosive situation and has deeply hurt the sentiments of the majority community.”
“The people of J&K acceded to a secular India and not to a theocratic State. In a multi-religious country like India religious beliefs of every community have to be respected and protected. This is enshrined in our constitution under Article 25. Certain choices are determined by religious beliefs and cannot and also should not be dictated by the State,” he said.He added that the National Conference believes that the recent tendency towards selective banning is regressive and part of a broader design to foment communal discord. “We appeal to all sections of the society to respect the spirit of the constitution and provide enough space to all religions to follow their beliefs.”Rhullah added that National Conference was consulting legal and constitutional experts with a view to effect suitable amendments in relevant sections of the Ranbir Penal Code (RPC) in order to preempt such situations from arising again in the future. (KNS)