Peoples’ Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday claimed she was put under house arrest to prevent her from visiting Sopore to offer condolences on the demise of former Hurriyat Conference chairman Abdul Gani Bhat.
“The decision to place the political leadership under house arrest today, simply to stop us from visiting Sopore to offer condolences on the demise of Professor Abdul Gani Bhat, lays bare the harsh and undemocratic reality in Jammu and Kashmir,” she said in a post on X.
Bhat died at his Sopore residence in Wednesday evening after a prolonged illness.
Referring to the recent controversy at the Hazratbal Shrine here, Mehooba said the public anger was a “loud, unmistakable message”.
“What unfolded at Hazratbal Dargah the eruption of spontaneous, raw public anger was not just an isolated incident. It was a loud, unmistakable message from a people pushed to the edge. The BJP, however, remains willfully blind to this truth refusing to learn anything from the deep anguish and suppressed emotions that have been building for years now,” she added.
A huge controversy erupted in Kashmir after a plaque with the Ashoka emblem was vandalised in the Hazratbal shrine on September 5 as most political parties accused Waqf Board chairperson Darakshan Andrabi of hurting religious sentiments by using the national emblem in the mosque and demanded registration of a criminal case and her immediate removal.
The former chief minister of the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir said it is becoming “increasingly clear” that the BJP has “no interest” in peace or healing in Kashmir.
“Instead, they seem determined to keep the region in a constant state of turmoil weaponising pain and unrest for political mileage across the rest of the country. This cynical approach is not just irresponsible; it is dangerous and utterly reprehensible,” she added.
Peoples’ Conference chief and MLA Handwara, Sajad Lone also claimed that he was not allowed to travel to Sopore.
“I have been put under house arrest in order to prevent me from visiting Botingoo, the ancestral village of Proffesor Ghani sahib. I fail to understand what is the need for this. Professor sahib was a pacifist and literally long retired. A final good bye is something which we all deserved,” Lone said. (Agencies)
