PDP, BJP can work together if they follow CMP: Madhav

NEW DELHI: BJP general secretary Ram Madhav, one of the party's key negotiators for the alliance with PDP, on Monday said the two parties have differing ideological strands but can work together if they don’t deviate from the Common Minimum Programme (CMP) drawn up for governance.
Disagreeing with chief minister Mufti Mohammed Sayeed's comments crediting Pakistan, Hurriyat and militants for the peaceful polls in the state, Madhav said it was due to the people of the state, security forces and the Election Commission.
On a day the issue rocked Parliament, he said despite “great differences”, the two parties came together to respect the mandate and provide the state with its most "representative government ever”. He said the "guiding force" for the new government will be the CMP released on Sunday.
"We have great differences on many political issues. The alliance with PDP was the best available and most difficult. We had to keep the interest of the state in mind and respect the mandate. This is the most representative government J&K has ever got," he said.
Rejecting the charge that it is the lure of power which brought the two parties together, he said PDP had "better options" in National Conference and Congress, both of which had been announcing "one-sided wedding" with PDP. But PDP and BJP came together to respect the mandate, he said.
The alliance government has three core issues on its agenda; restoring peace, rehabilitation of flood victims and equitable development of all three regions — Jammu, the Kashmir valley and Ladakh. Kashmiri Pandit leaders will be taken into confidence for any rehabilitation exercise, he said.
Asked about the RSS' views on the alliance, Madhav said the suggestions of "Parivar elders" were taken into account. "There is no excuse for this government to fail. It has the support of almost 60 MLAs (in an 87-member House)," he said.
Meanwhile, senior PDP leader and Lok Sabha MP Muzaffar Hussain Baig said controversy due to statements from both sides cast a shadow on the new government. “In the last 24 hours, some statements on both sides (PDP-BJP) have created confusion. It is not a promising beginning but I am still hopeful,” said Baig, a former deputy CM.
"Let people decide whether the clauses in CMP are clear or whether they are capable of two different meanings, one that suits BJP and another that suits PDP. I would have preferred more clarity on these issues," he told PTI.