Srinagar: Political leaders including three former chief ministers were detained ahead of a march by the People’s Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) to protest against the recommendations of the Delimitation Commission. “Good morning and welcome to 2022. A new year with the same JK police illegally locking people in their homes and an administration so terrified of normal democratic activity,” National Conference vice-president and former chief minister Omar Abdullah tweeted.
“Trucks parked outside our gates to scuttle the peaceful @JKPAGD sit-in protest. Some things never change,” he said.
Abdullah, whose father and veteran politician Farooq Abdullah heads the PAGD, claimed, “Talk about a lawless police state, the police have even locked the internal gate connecting my father’s home to my sister’s. Yet our leaders have the cheek to tell the world that India is the largest democracy, hah!!”
Senior CPI (M) leader M Y Tarigami, who is the spokesperson of the alliance, said it was sad that the Jammu and Kashmir administration was “scared even to allow a peaceful protest”.
“This is where the situation gets worse when people are not even allowed to express their opinion before the public,” he added.
Former chief minister Mehbooba Mufti had also been placed under detention. “A truck is parked outside my house too,” she added.
The PAGD had proposed to hold a peaceful demonstration in Srinagar on Saturday against the proposal of the Delimitation Commission of increasing six seats in Jammu division and one in Kashmir. With this, the number of seats in Jammu would have gone up to 43 and Kashmir to 47.
