Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti on Monday urged the central leadership to move beyond the angry rhetoric of war and initiate the process of dialogue and reconciliation, the advice coming as security forces were locked in a fierce gunfight with militants in the forests of Srinagar.

Mehbooba, addressing the PDP’s 26th foundation day at the Sher-e-Kashmir Park in Srinagar, said India was a big country and it should behave as an elder brother and maintain friendly relations with its neighbours — an apparent reference to Pakistan.

“If you want to make a name across the world, leave China behind, then stop ranting about the war and go for dialogue and reconciliation,” the former chief minister told the BJP-led government at the Centre.

The PDP chief said when a Kashmiri speaks about India’s neighbours, they are reminded not to interfere in the country’s foreign policy, but she would.

“Hum dakhal denge (we will interfere) and urge you to become an elder brother because your wars are fought in J&K,” Mehbooba said, asking the Centre to explain what India’s foreign policy was without Jammu and Kashmir.

“Decades of conflict have brought only suffering — wars end, only to be replaced by new ones.”

Mehbooba said Jammu and Kashmir should be India’s crown and not its fetters.

Mehbooba said the clashes between India and Pakistan during Operation Sindoor caused a lot of destruction in Jammu and Kashmir, in which “our kids, mothers and fathers lost their lives”.

“I can’t say what it achieved. That war ended, but the race to procure weapons by both countries picked up,” she said.

The PDP chief said while China was progressing, Pakistan was living off its debt, and India had to provide free ration to 80 crore people.

“Our schools and hospitals lack infrastructure, but we want the latest guns for the sake of war,” she said.

Mehbooba also referred to Delhi’s decision to send emissaries across the world to apprise them about Operation Sindoor and the state of affairs in Jammu and Kashmir, wondering “if Kashmiris don’t (as a corollary) emphasise on dialogue, who will?”

She said Jammu and Kashmir had remained a challenge for every Prime Minister, but she had no hesitation in asserting that “Modiji can resolve the Kashmir issue, if he wills”.

“He has been chosen by 120 crore people and he has the power to do it,” she said.

The PDP leader urged the Centre to abandon “its security-centric approach in Jammu and Kashmir and embrace meaningful reconciliation and dialogue to address the region’s long-standing issues”.

“…Pakistan has invested in war machinery, and India, once revered as the ‘hathi’ for its strength and wisdom, has shackled Jammu and Kashmir with a heavy-handed approach,” she said.