Srinagar: The BJP and the People's Democratic Party on Saturday swore by their alliance in Jammu and Kashmir, indicating that the coalition has survived the latest round of acrimony, although many outstanding issues are expected to keep the pot boiling.

The two parties were at loggerheads over the rape and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Jammu's Kathua as several BJP leaders were strongly advocating a CBI probe while the PDP all along supported a crime branch investigation ordered by chief minister Mehbooba Mufti.

Friday's resignation of two BJP ministers Choudhary Lal Singh and Chander Prakash Gupta, who had opposed arrests of the men allegedly involved in the crime, has helped calm the tempers in PDP, which was desperately looking for a face-saver to continue the alliance with BJP.

The BJP accepted their resignations and forwarded them to the chief minister.

Both PDP and the BJP held separate meetings in Srinagar and Jammu, after which they iterated their commitment to the alliance.

Senior PDP minister Nayeem Akhtar was all praise for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the rest of the BJP leadership.

"We appreciate our alliance partner who helped us in this case," Akhtar told reporters, shortly after a marathon meeting chaired by Mehbooba. "They made the two ministers resign in the case... whose role was not positive.... I see that as a confidence-building measure. And if the PDP and the BJP continue to resolve their issues like this, I see no substitute to this alliance."

Akhtar said there was unprecedented support for action against the rapists and murderers across the country and he hoped such support would also be forthcoming in addressing other issues, including resolution of political issues.

"The incident, though tragic, has triggered an emotional bond between people in state and outside.... We expect the entire country to be with us," he said.

BJP national general secretary and the party's J&K in-charge Ram Madhav had arrived from Delhi to address party leaders in Jammu. He also sounded conciliatory and said there was no threat to the alliance.

"We are equal and responsible partners in the government. We are neither dictated by anybody nor can anyone dictate us... We have done our bid to allay the fears and misconceptions not only in Jammu and Kashmir but across the entire country."

Although BJP leaders in Jammu were against the crime branch probe in the Kathua case, Madhav said his party all along supported the investigations.

Some BJP leaders appeared to defend the two ministers who put in their papers, saying there were never pro-rapist.

"Certain amount of discretion should be maintained (by them). Certainly there was a lack of discretion.... Lack of discretion does not amount to any guilt. (But) that is why it led to misconception and they resigned," Madhav told reporters in Jammu.