Mehbooba Mufti is the President of PDP. She has served as the former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir
PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Sunday responded to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks on “intellectual Naxals”, saying she supports Article 370 and, by that logic, could also be called an “intellectual Naxal”.
Mufti’s remarks came after PM Modi, in his Independence Day address from the Red Fort on August 15, warned the country against people he described as “intellectual Naxals” and called for them to be identified and isolated.
Kiren Rijiju says PM did not target Opposition leaders
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju said PM Modi had not referred to Opposition leaders as “intellectual Naxals”. In a social media post, Rijiju said the term referred to people who support Maoists, do not believe in the Indian Constitution and support Article 370.
PM Modi warns against Maoist ideology
In his Red Fort address, Modi said Maoist ideology had influenced government institutions and policies for years, with people associated with it serving as advisers on government committees.
The Prime Minister said the country should not underestimate the challenge posed by Maoism and needed to remain vigilant. He also said decades of Naxalism and Maoist violence had destroyed the lives and aspirations of millions of young people.
Modi claimed that more than 3,500 police and security personnel had been killed in the conflict, and said Naxalism had once brought large parts of the country and its population under the control of armed groups.
Congress calls remark ‘hollow’
Congress criticised Modi’s remarks, with party leader Jairam Ramesh calling the concept of “intellectual Naxalism” hollow.
Ramesh said that demands such as a caste census had earlier been dismissed as “urban Naxal” ideas, but the government later announced a caste-based census. He alleged that the government first gives derogatory labels to Opposition demands and later adopts them.
Earlier, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram had also responded to Modi’s remarks, saying, “I am proud to be a mental Naxal.”
