Former Jammu & Kashmir CM and Peoples Democratic Party president Mehbooba Mufti on Tuesday said that changing the names of places “is a gimmick and was done to deflect attention from the real issues”.
In an apparent reference to renaming certain places in U.P. and Gujarat, Ms. Mufti said: “At a time when our country is witnessing rising agrarian distress and unemployment, crores [of people] still live without a roof over their head, name changing seems to be a mere gimmick to deflect attention from the real issues.”
Meanwhile, CPI(M) leader M.Y. Tarigami said there was a spurt in atrocities against Dalits and minorities in the country. “The attacks are fostered to divide people... the government policies have only deepened people’s misery.”