India News | Banerjee, Stalin Condemn BJP over Omar Abdullah's House Arrest
by PTI · LatestLYSrinagar, Jul 14 (PTI) Chief ministers of West Bengal and Tamil Nadu on Monday slammed the house arrest of their Jammu and Kashmir counterpart Omar Abdullah and his ministers.
Abdullah was detained at home over his wish to visit the graveyard of those killed by Dogra forces in 1931.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said it amounted to snatching the democratic rights of a citizen.
"What is wrong in visiting the graveyard of martyrs? This is not only unfortunate, it also snatches the democratic right of a citizen," Banerjee posted on X.
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"What happened to an elected Chief Minister @OmarAbdullah is unacceptable. Shocking. Shameful," she added.
Abdullah and several leaders of the National Conference and opposition parties were put under house arrest on Sunday to prevent them from going to the Naqshband Sahib graveyard in Srinagar to mark Martyrs' Day.
A defiant Abdullah, however, on Monday scaled the gates of the graveyard to pay tributes to the 22 people killed by the Dogra army on July 13, 1931.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, in a post on X, said that at a time when there is a growing demand for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir's statehood, the current events unfolding there are a grim reminder of how far things have deteriorated.
"The elected CM Hon'ble @OmarAbdullah is being placed under house arrest simply for wanting to pay homage to the 1931 martyrs and is forced to climb walls to do so. Is this how an elected Chief Minister should be treated?" he asked.
Stalin hit out at the BJP-ruled Centre, saying it was stripping away the rights of elected state governments.
"This is not just about one state or one leader. From Tamil Nadu to Kashmir, the Union BJP Government is systematically stripping away the rights of elected State Governments.
"If this can happen in Kashmir, it can happen anywhere, to any elected representative of the people. Every democratic voice must unequivocally condemn this," he added.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav used poetry to remind the BJP about the possibility of it having to sit in the opposition in future.
"If you keep imposing restrictions on every matter like this, then when the regime changes, tell me yourself, which border will you cross to escape?" he said in a post on Hindi on X.
July 13 is commemorated as 'Martyrs Day' in Jammu and Kashmir in tribute to 22 people killed by the Dogra army outside Srinagar's central jail in 1931.
The L-G administration had dropped the day from the list of gazetted holidays in 2020.
CPI leader D Raja condemned Abdullah's detention as insulting.
"It is utterly unacceptable that in Jammu & Kashmir, the LG's administration and J&K Police prevented even the elected Chief Minister @OmarAbdullah, along with citizens and leaders, from paying their respects at the Martyrs' graveyard on July 13, arresting and manhandling them.
"Adding to this insult, numerous leaders were placed under house arrest, silenced within their own homes on a day of collective remembrance. This is not just a breach of democratic norms. It's a blatant assault on our conscience and a reminder of how far governance in J&K has fallen under authoritarian unaccountable rule," Raja said on X.
CPI(M) demanded restoration of statehood to J-K and urged the administration to respect the people's verdict
"This contempt for an elected government by the Central Govt and its representatives is unacceptable. Restore full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir. Respect the People's Verdict," it said.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)