Jammu, March 9: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah lashed out at his rival Mehbooba Mufti for "playing petty politics" on women victims.
Abdullah took on Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mufti at a function on International Women's Day at the ruling National Conference's headquarters here.
He said the opposition PDP had said that it would get an acid attack victim treated in Delhi and pay for all the expenses, but the state government had to bear her medical expenses.
"The state government paid Rs.800,000 for her treatment. This is the kind of politics Mufti and her party are playing. It is petty politics," Abdullah said.
Since July 2009, when the PDP had accused Abdullah of being involved in a sex scandal, the chief minister and Mufti are at loggerheads. The CBI had absolved Abdullah of all charges in the scandal.
Asking women to be champions of their own cause, the chief minister said: "You have to become your own voice and work for the comprehensive development of women folk in the country."
The chief minister also gave details of the initiatives his government had taken to safeguard interests of women and give them justice.
About the Justice Verma Committee report, he said: "I have asked the concerned department in the state to study the recommendations of the committee and work out a roadmap for incorporating these in J&K laws to make women safer and to ensure severe punishment to those responsible for cruelty and crimes against women."
