New Delhi:Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday broke his silence over Indian-controlled Kashmir, where over 60 people have been killed and thousands injured in unrest since the killing of 22-year-old militant Burhan Wani by security forces last month.

In an address in the central state of Madhya Pradesh, Modi said that Indians love Kashmir and blamed a few people for creating unrest in the northern state. “India loves Kashmir. Only a handful of people have been misled and are hurting the great land of Kashmir,” he said.

He also cited the Atal Bihari Vajpayee model of outreach to Kashmiris, saying the former Indian Prime Minister has adopted “Insaniyat, Kashmiriyat and Jamooriyat. We are his followers. I want to tell people of Kashmir that the Azadi (freedom) that India feels, even Kashmir can have.”

Reaching out to the youths of Indian-controlled Kashmir amid concerns that many of them are taking to militancy, the Prime Minister said: “I invite young people of Kashmir to make Kashmir the swarga (paradise) that it is.