National Conference patron Dr Farooq Abdullah Thursday asked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to follow the footsteps of Atal Bihari Vajpayee and extend hand of friendship with Pakistan. He expressed concern over unabated border skirmishes between India and Pakistan.He said the border hostilities were detrimental for both India and Pakistan, as any full-fledged conflict would lead to devastation and destruction in the entire region. “War will not only cause human loss, but also shatter the economy of the region and the costs of confrontation will be borne by generations to come”, he said, adding that dialogue had no substitute, as even after four wars during the past seven decades all outstanding issues remained unresolved.Farooq Abdullah according to CNS strongly pitched for peace and cooperation between India and Pakistan, saying people of the region in general and J&K in particular could not live in an atmosphere of animosity and uncertainty anymore.Wars haven’t and won’t resolve inherent political issues between India and Pakistan. Kashmir is an issue that needs to be resolved. It is the Kashmir issue that is widening the gap between India and Pakistan. Both the country heads should resolve this issue amicably,” he said.Farooq Abdullah expressed concern over the rise of communal politics. He said that communalism will have serious ramifications and it will only lead the country towards disaster. (CNS)