BJP pulls out of alliance with PDP in Jammu and Kashmir, CM Mufti resigns

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) broke its alliance with Jammu and Kashmir’s ruling Peoples Democratic Party on Tuesday, forcing Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti to resign at the end of an uneasy partnership at a time when fresh violence was stalking the militancy-hit state.

“It has become untenable for the BJP to continue in the alliance government in Jammu and Kashmir," general secretary Ram Madhav said in New Delhi, blaming Mufti’s party for challenging security conditions. He did not, however, name Mufti in his address to the press.

The BJP’s decision, which was taken after consulting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah, raised the possibility of governor's rule in the politically volatile state for the eighth time, news agency PTI reported.

“Keeping in mind that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India and in order to control the prevailing situation in the state, we have decided that the reins of power in the state be handed over to the governor," Madhav said.

Immediately after his news conference, senior PDP minister and party's chief spokesperson, Naeem Akhtar, told reporters in Srinagar that CM Mufti will submit her resignation to Governor N N Vohra.

In the national capital, Madhav said the Centre’s ruling BJP did everything feasible for the development of the state, which has been on the boil since the killing of a militant leader two years ago.