Centre withdrawing cases of stone pelting in Kashmir: Rajnath Singh

Singh, who is on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir, said a decision in this regard has been taken as the Government is "concerned about the future of the state's youth" and is of the view that those involved in such incidents must have been misled into the act.

"We believe that children anywhere are the same. We understand that some youth were misled into stone pelting... Children can make mistakes... That is why we decided to withdraw the cases against those children who were involved in stone pelting," he said while addressing a programme at Sher-e-Kashmir Indoor Stadium.

Singh urged the youth not to take the path of destruction, saying several schemes have been formulated for them to secure their future.

"I want to appeal to the youth that they should take the path of development... They should not take recourse to destruction," he said.

"There is extreme love in the heart of Prime Minister Narendra Modi for Jammu and Kashmir. It is our responsibility to provide a secure future to the youth of the state and it can be done with the power of education and miracle of sports," the Home Minister said.

"With the help of the Jammu and Kashmir government, we will change the face and destiny of the state," Singh said.

At the programme, Singh felicitated several sportspeople from the state and said there will not be any dearth of funds from the centre for the promotion of sports in Jammu and Kashmir.