PDP MLA’s ‘militants’ are martyrs’ remark miffs ally BJP

Srinagar, Jan 11: Peoples Democratic Party MLA Aijaz Ahmad Mir Thursday said that Kashmiri militants killed in encounters with government forces and the police are “martyrs”.
“We should not celebrate the killings of militants, it is our collective failure, we feel sad when our security forces are martyred as well, we should sympathise with parents of security jawans and with parents of militants as well,” he said outside the Assembly on Thursday.
“Jo Kashmir ke hein, chahey kisi bhi halat mein marein, woh martyr hein (Those who hail from Kashmir are martyrs irrespective of the fact under what circumstances they get killed),” he said, while replying to a question whether he considered slain militants as martyrs.
The PDP MLA’s statement comes a day after he had asked legislators in the J&K Assembly not to express happiness over the killing of militants as they too were “brothers”. He demanded the government to hold talks with separatists and militants to resolve the Kashmir issue.
Reacting to Mir’s statement, BJP MP and Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas told ANI: “Terrorists and separatists are the enemies of Kashmir, Kashmiris, development and peace. How can they be someone’s brother?”
While Minister of State for Transport and BJP MLA Sunil Sharma said that no one can describe a slain militant as “martyr”. If a sitting legislator has said it, it certainly calls for an enquiry, he added.
BJP MLA from Nowshera, Ravinder Raina, said that “glorifying terrorists is like playing with fire and he will take up the matter with the Speaker and also ask Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti to reprimand her legislator for such a sensational statement”.
Former minister and National Conference MLA, Ali Mohammad Sagar, said that it only highlights the “double standards” of the PDP.