Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti today appealed people to carry forward the tradition of social inclusion and not let any vested elements cause wedge among different communities.
While interacting with the members of a civil society here, the chief minister praised the people of the region for upholding harmony and brotherhood among themselves.
She said during the toughest phases, the people stood up for the tolerant values for which the state has been known since ages and for this they ought to be complimented.
"Strengthening of an inclusive set up in the state was the idea behind stitching up the present alliance, so that people, regions and communities get further closer to each other and march together on the path of progress," Mufti said.
She, however, cautioned people against the nefarious designs of some vested elements who do not like this amity and are keen to create an opportunity to disturb peace.
Referring to the recent incident of rape and murder of a minor girl at Kathua, Mufti assured the people that justice will be done in the case and whosoever found guilty would be punished.
She said the vehemence with which every section of the society including students, women, children, aged stood up demanding justice for the victim was encouraging for the whole state.
Terming peace and communal harmony as prerequisite for development, the chief minister said she has conceived many developmental ideas for the region like developing border tourism at Suchetgarh, cable car for the city, development of heritage spots like Mubarak Mandi and Raghunath Mandir.
The participants in the interaction included members from business community, intellectuals, writers, scholars, lawyers, women activists, social workers, farmers, retired officers, community leaders and representatives from other sections of society.
(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)