Abdullahs slam Pervez over remark on Saeed

■ Musharraf said he was ‘ biggest supporter’ of LeT

Former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister and working president of Opposition National Conference ( NC) Omar Abdullah on Wednesday took a dig at former Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf over his statement that he likes Hafiz Saeed and was “biggest supporter” of Lashkar- eTayyaba ( LeT), saying he could do anything to find a foothold in his country.

“May be now some of our news channels & anchors will stop falling over themselves to interview this man. Clearly he will say anything to find a foothold in Pakistan,” Mr Abdullah wrote on microblogging site Twitter.

Mr Abdullah’s father and NC president Farooq Abdullah also lashed out at Gen. Musharraf, who had earlier told ARY News that he was the “biggest supporter” of the LeT and its co- founder and the chief or amir of Jama’atudDa’wah Hafiz Saeed. “They ( LeT) are the biggest force. India got them declared as terrorists after partnering with the US. Yes, they ( LeT) are involved in Kashmir but in Kashmir, it is between us and India,” he said.

Senior Abdullah termed it as “a tragic moment”. He said, “I feel sad that a man of his integrity, who has been the chief of the Pakistan Army as well as the President, has praised something like this. It is a tragic moment.”

The NC president who has served Jammu and Kashmir as chief minister thrice also said, “Any terrorist outfit is going to destroy not only their country, but every other country where terrorism is being promoted. I’m sorry if the ex- President of Pakistan thinks the LeT was going to protect Islam.”

He urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to devise ways to initiate talks with the neighbouring nation to combat the problem “which has been there for the last 70 years”.

May be now some of our news channels & anchors will stop falling over themselves to interview this man. Clearly he will say anything to find a foothold in Pak. — Omar Abdullah, NC leader