BJP flays government's 8-point formula for Kashmir

BJP today said the Centre's eight-point formula to defuse the current unrest in the Kashmir Valley had raised questions about the secular credentials of the government.

"The formula is demoralising for the security forces and patriotic people," BJP spokesperson Tarun Vijay said during a visit to Nagpur.

"17 youth were killed in Jammu during the Amarnath agitation in 2008. Not a single person's family has been compensated so far, while those who attacked the security forces and got killed in the skirmishes are being given Rs5 lakh each and the arrested stone-pelters are being released," he said.

On the other hand, over 50 persons who participated in the Amarnath agitation in Jammu are still facing court cases, he claimed.

The government should be seen as protecting patriotic people and not "communalising" the situation by releasing those who attacked the security personnel, he said.

Vijay was in the city to release the inaugural issue of a local Hindi weekly and later addressed party workers by speaking on the life of Pt Deendayal Upadhyay.

The Centre yesterday announced an eight-point Kashmir formula which said a Group of Interlocutors will hold "sustained dialogue" with all sections of Jammu and Kashmir and also review deployment of security forces in the Valley, especially in Srinagar.

The Centre also advised the J&K government to release students and youth who have been arrested or detained for stone pelting and similar violations of law during the Valley unrest, and withdraw all charges against them.

The state government has also been advised to review cases of all Public Safety Act (PSA) detenues and withdraw detention orders in appropriate cases.

The unrest has claimed the lives of 105 persons since June 10.