PDP govt failed to assess situation: Omar on Kashmir unrest

Srinagar:  Accusing the Mehbooba Mufti government of failing to assess the situation after Hizbul commander Burhan Wani’s killing, NC leader Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said the PDP-BJP combine had “forgotten” the lessons of 2008 and 2010 when the Valley witnessed largescale protests.
The former chief minister also charged that Mehbooba Mufti was “shamelessly” trying to convey message of normalcy in the state hit by violence. “I will not go into whether the situation is worse or not than 2008 or 2010.
That is something you people have to decide. However, I feel that unfortunately, the lessons which we learnt in 2008 and 2010, the present government has forgotten them for some reasons,” Omar told reporters here.
The former chief minister was speaking to media after paying tributes to the martyrs of 1931 at Martyrs graveyard in Khawaja Bazar in downtown area of the city here. Omar, who is the working president of the opposition National Conference (NC), said either the government’s assessment of the situation after Wani’s killing was wrong or their preparations were not right.
“Either the present government exhibited negligence in assessing the situation after Burhan’s killing or they did not prepare for the situation. Some reason out of the two is true that either their assessment was wrong or their preparations were not right.So, it is the responsibility of the government to restore normalcy,” he said.
The NC leader said it was the time to reach out to the Valley with a healing touch and requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to send specialist doctors to the Valley for treating the injured.
“Hon (Honourable) @narendramodi ji. After Kerala fire you carried a plane load of burn specialists with you.Please send eye/trauma specialists to Kashmir,” he said.
“Please don’t let the fact that these youngsters people have been injured in protests stop us from giving the best care possible.Thank you jenab,” he said. The NC leader also appealed to the Centre to order the forces to show restraint while dealing with the protests. “I appeal the Centre to order the forces for exercising restraint and if people and forces can be ferried in planes, then what is the problem in getting medicine here.
The news about dearth of emergency medicine is coming out of the hospitals.I request them to bring medicines and other such things in the planes in which forces are being brought. “Our doctors must be tired now, how many hours can they work? Our operation theatres are overflowing, so I appeal them that normalcy cannot be restored by ferrying people in buses, we need some concrete steps like restraint and immediate assistance to hospitals,” he said. (PTI)