Srinagar, December 2: Jammu & Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik on Sunday clarified on the row which has erupted over his administration's planned move to "simplify" the process of granting Permanent Resident Certificate or PRC in the state. Malik's response came while reverting to a letter sent by National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah.

Malik, who has been accused at least three Valley-based parties of attempting to change the procedural rules of granting PRC, said the speculations are baseless. The changes being mulled over by the State Administrative Council are only intended to simplify the process and make it more transparent, the Governor claimed. Fresh Plea Challenging Article 370 in Jammu & Kashmir Turned Down by Supreme Court.

"No changes in the procedural rules governing the issue of PR (Permanent Residency) certificates will ever be done without larger consultations with all stakeholders," Malik reportedly stated in the letter he wrote back to Abdullah.

The Governor also marked his dissent over the NC leader's claim that the fax machine at Raj Bhawan has still not been fixed.

Here's what Abdullah had tweeted:

Responding to the former chief minister's charge, Malik accused Abdullah of making a baseless claim on Twitter out of impatience.

"Incidentally my fax machine was working and your fax was received and confirmed by my office while you were tweeting that it was not functional," the Governor said.

Notably, Abdullah is not alone to mark his dissent to the Governor on the proposed changes in PRC rules. His political rivals - the People's Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti and People's Conference founder Sajjad Lone - are on the same page on the issue. The three leaders have asked Maik to refrain from tinkering with sensitive issues in the absence of an elected government.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 02, 2018 11:44 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).