It is no secret that politics in Jammu and Kashmir is often a high-stakes game of words and emotions. However, during a recent rally in Poonch, PDP President Mehbooba Mufti took a different route. Instead of just criticising current policies, she made a claim that has sparked quite a bit of conversation: the idea that while the public sees tension, secret talks between India and Pakistan have been quietly happening behind closed doors for months.
The Claim of Secret Diplomacy
According to Mufti, these aren’t your typical official summits. She suggested that retired diplomats and former military officers have been meeting with Pakistani representatives in neutral countries over the last three months. Her point was simple—if there is a conversation happening in the shadows, why not bring it into the light?
She hit a sentimental note by reflecting on recent losses, mentioning that if dialogue had taken priority earlier, many lives—including those of security personnel and innocent children like Zoya and Zain—might have been saved. For Mufti, the human cost of the “status quo” is becoming far too high.
Bringing Back the “Mufti Vision”
A large part of her address focused on her father, the late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. She reminded the crowd that his “blueprint” for peace—which centered on trade, open borders, and talk—remains the most practical way forward. She recalled his firm belief that no matter how much any party opposes it, everyone eventually has to sit down at the negotiating table.
She pointed specifically to the closure of the Rawalakot trade route. For those living in the border areas, this wasn’t just a political decision; it was an economic blow. The vision was to replace the flow of weapons with the flow of goods, providing local youth with jobs instead of grievances.
Life After Article 370
Addressing the 2019 changes, Mufti argued that regions like Pir Panjal and Chenab Valley have felt the weight of these decisions the most. From the struggle for basic administrative services to the feeling of being ignored by the center, she highlighted how the PDP had pushed for separate divisions to make life easier for the common man.
Beyond the big political questions, she also touched on daily struggles: inflation, unemployment, and the increasing drug problem among the youth. She urged the younger generation to stay away from substances and instead focus on the democratic process, particularly the upcoming Panchayat elections, as a way to reclaim their voice.
At the heart of her speech was a recurring theme: you can’t fix a problem without talking about it. Whether the “secret talks” she mentioned are a reality or a political nudge, the message is clear—peace in the region requires a bridge, not just a wall.
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