Another Partition Soon if Lynchings in the Name of Cow Continue, Says PDP Leader

New Delhi: Former J&K deputy chief minister Muzaffar Hussain Baig on Saturday said the country would face another Partition soon if the incidents of lynching were not curbed.

Addressing workers at the raising day of the PDP in Srinagar, Baig said: “Gai aur bhains ke naam par musalmano ka katal bandh karein warna naateje achhe nahi honge. 1947 mein ek partition pehle hi ho chuka hai (Stop killing Muslims in the name of cows and buffalos or the results won’t be good. The country has already seen one Partition in 1947)."

He said the PDP had allied with the BJP not for power but to ensure that justice was done to Muslims across the country and to the Kashmiri people.

“We allied with the BJP so that they can trust Muslims. We allied with the BJP so that justice is done to Muslims and Kashmiris and talks with Pakistan can take place," he added.

As the statement created a buzz in political circles, Baig tried to play down his remarks.

Speaking to CNN-News18, the PDP leader said he was misquoted and he meant that society would be divided if such incidents continued. Baig said incidents of lynching divided the community emotionally and polluted the environment of the country.

Expressing faith in Narendra Modi, he said only the Prime Minister could put an end to the incidents. However, he added that Modi alone could not control the situation for which he blamed individuals who indulge in violence.

Baig sought to underplay the political connotation of lynching incidents, saying such cases were reported under every regime, including the Congress, and could not be tied down to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alone.

When asked about Union minister Rajyavardhan Rathore’s statement that a high-level committee set up to examine the need for a separate law to curb such incidents would also bring cases of stone-pelting under its ambit, the PDP leader said he welcomed the expanded definition of lynching.

Baig also expressed apprehensions that leaders of his own party might have twisted his words as part of a political conspiracy.