'If we don't find solution... we'll meet same fate as Gaza': Farooq Abdullah bats for India-Pakistan talks

Amid an ongoing operation to track down terrorists behind the ambush that left four soldiers dead in J&K’s Poonch last week, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah on Tuesday said that if India does not hold a dialogue with Pakistan it will meet the same fate as Gaza and Palestine, which is being  bombed by Israel.

#WATCH | National Conference MP Farooq Abdullah says, "Atal Bihari Vajpayee had said that we can change our friends but not our neighbours. If we remain friendly with our neighbours, both will progress. PM Modi also said that war is not an option now and the matters should be… pic.twitter.com/EcPx9B70jJ

— ANI (@ANI) December 26, 2023

“Atal Bihari Vajpayee had said that we can change our friends but not our neighbours. If we remain friendly with our neighbours, both will progress. PM Modi also said that war is not an option now and the matters should be resolved through dialogue. Where is the dialogue?” he asked while addressing reporters on Tuesday.

He said that Nawaz Sharif is about to become the Prime Minister of Pakistan and they are willing to talk but India is not showing any interest.

“Nawaz Sharif is about to become the PM (of Pakistan) and they are saying that we are ready to talk (with India), but what is the reason why we are not ready to talk? If we do not find a solution through dialogue, we will meet the same fate as Gaza and Palestine, which are being bombed by Israel…,” he added.

Reacting to Abdullah’s remarks, senior BJP leader Hina Shafi Bhat criticised the veteran leader saying it is regrettable that a senior leader from Jammu and Kashmir is still talking about talks with Pakistan.

“Farooq saab should learn now, this regime is not going to bow down before Pakistan. We tried, they have backstabbed us again and again,” NDTV quoted Bhat as saying.

Abdullah’s comments in the backdrop of of a series incidents being reported from Jammu and Kashmir including a terrorist attack in Poonch last week in which four soldiers were killed.

On Tuesday, security forces continued to carry out cordon and search operations for the sixth consecutive day to track down the terrorists behind the ambush in Poonch.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is likely to visit ground zero on Wednesday with top Army and civilian officials monitoring the situation in Poonch in view of the terrorist attack which was followed by the death of three civilians in the area, official sources said.

Over 30 suspects have been questioned during the past few days and several of them have been released, they said.

“The cordon and search operation is going on to track down the terrorists involved in the ambush on Army vehicles,” a senior official said.

The official said that the operation includes sniffer dogs, surveillance equipment and aerial mechanisms. Additional forces have been deployed to plug seven infiltration routes amid area domination operations in the area, he said.

Operations are being carried out cautiously as there are dense forests, deep gorges and caves, official sources said.

With inputs from agencies