PDP chief and former J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti has stuck to her decision to not contest Assembly polls in J&K till restoration of statehood. Talking to reporters in Srinagar, Mehbooba said, “I have been the CM of a government with BJP which revoked FIRs against 12,000 youth. Can you do this today? I, as the CM, wrote a letter to separatists inviting them for talks. I got a ceasefire implemented on the ground. I brought the whole leadership of the country and they went to the doors of Hurriyat leaders. Our Assembly was very powerful. Now, it has been reduced to a municipality,” she said.Ghulam Nabi Azad ill, to stay out of campaignFormer Chief Minister and DPAP chief Ghulam Nabi Azad is out of the polls and would not be campaigning for his party candidates in the three-phase J&K Assembly polls, beginning September 18, due to health concerns. DPAP spokesman and Azad’s close aide Salman Nizami said Azad is presently not well and could not campaign for the first phase. Asked if Azad would campaign in the second and third phase of polls, he said, “I can’t say anything now”. After suffering chest pain in Srinagar on August 25, Azad rushed to Delhi next day and was admitted at AIIMS for two days.Intl cricketers to play in Kashmir after 40 yearsWith the improvement in the ground situation and significant drop in militant violence in Kashmir, international cricket is all set to return to the Valley after four decades. The Indian and international cricketing stars will return to Kashmir to play the final leg of the Legends League Cricket (LLC) at Bakshi Stadium, Srinagar in October. It would be after four decades that international cricketers will play in the Valley. Top international stars like Chris Gayle, Hashim Amla, Ross Taylor, Aaron Finch, Martin Guptill, Suresh Raina, Dinesh Karthik and many others are expected to play in the tournament, which begins on September 20.Fayaz waniOur correspondent in Jammu and Kashmirfayazwani123@gmail.com
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