Mehbooba Mufti

Srinagar, Sept. 20: People’s Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti today found herself in a soup over BJP leader Sushma Swaraj’s remark that she had praised Narendra Modi.

Mehbooba today denied she had praised Modi, as chief minister Omar Abdullah lost no time in condemning the PDP leader.

Swaraj yesterday said it was not just BJP leaders but even Modi’s political adversaries who had praised him.

“Even rivals like PDP’s Mehbooba Mufti have praised Modi’s work ethics in front of everyone at the NIC meeting. This made us proud,” she said, referring to the recent National Integration Council meeting. “Mehbooba, the leader of the PDP, a party opposed to the BJP, said that a Muslim friend of her wanted to invest in Gujarat. She was astonished to be quickly granted an appointment. When the friend of Mehbooba met Modi, she got a decision in half-an hour,” Swaraj quoted Mehbooba as saying during Modi’s sadhbhavna meet.

'You can accuse an Advani or a Sushma of bias when they praise Modi. But this was Mehbooba Mufti,” said Swaraj.

The claim put the PDP leader in a tight spot as she struggled to rebut it.

“I will die before I say things like Modi is a pro-Muslim or that he did anything for Muslims”, the PDP president told The Telegraph.

Mehbooba, however, parried questions over whether she had mentioned Modi during her speech or recommended her friend to invest in Gujarat. “If I say anything you will quote me out of context. All I can say is that I did not say anything like what Sushma Swaraj said. I do not know why have I been misquoted. I request the government of India to release the text of my speech,” said Mehbooba.

She also refused to be drawn into issues such as whether that makes Swaraj a “liar”.

Swaraj today said she “correctly quoted” Mehbooba in Ahmedabad yesterday.

“It was not a private conversation. I only quoted what she spoke in the presence of over a hundred people in the afternoon session of the National Integration Council meeting on September 10,' she wrote on Twitter.

The chief minister, Omar Abdullah, was quick to denounce her.

“I am not surprised that Mehbooba praised Modi. She can praise whoever she likes. I am just surprised at the fact that she would deny it even after knowing that others had heard her speech,” Omar tweeted.

“Why can't she just admit what she said? That would have been much more graceful to accept than calling Ms Swaraj a liar,” wrote Omar.

In a war of words, Mehbooba criticized Omar’s father Farooq Abdullah for supporting Modi during the anti-Muslim riots.

“Farooq praised Modi just recently…. (Even) Omar himself was a minister in the NDA when the anti-Muslim riots happened,” she said.

“I have never denied being a part of the NDA. But I have also said it was a mistake. I regret it and will never repeat it. I have at least had the guts to admit our mistake, why don't you have the guts to admit what everyone heard you say - your praise for Modi,” Omar shot back.

Mehbooba was referring to a decision of National Conference to stay in alliance with the BJP following 2002 riots despite growing calls to end its relations with the saffron party.

Omar also invoked the parliament resolution saying the records would prove how he voted despite being a minister. “Lest I forget Ms Mufti - the record in parliament will show how I voted on the resolution about Gujarat riots even though I was a minister,” he said.