Article 370 Abrogation: On 4th Anniversary, PDP Says Mehbooba Mufti Put Under House Arrest, NC Office Sealed

The PDP said that they were denied permission to organise an event to mark the fourth anniversary of Article 370 abrogation and the roads leading to the party headquarters were also sealed.

New Delhi: People's Democratic Party (PDP) chief Mehbooba Mufti and several other political leaders of Jammu and Kashmir claimed they were put under house arrest on the fourth anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 on Saturday, news agency PTI reported. Taking to Twitter, the former chief minister wrote, “I’ve been put under house arrest along with other senior PDP leaders today. This comes after a midnight crackdown where scores of my party men are illegally detained in police stations. GOI's false claims about normalcy to the SC stands exposed by their actions driven by paranoia.”

According to a PDP spokesperson, former ministers Abdul Rehman Veeri, Nayeem Akhter and Asia Naqash, PDP general secretary Ghulam Nahi Lone Hanjura, general secretary (organisation) Mehboob Beg, and district president Budgam Mohammad Yasin Bhat have also been placed under house arrest, reported PTI.

“Hope the Hon’ble SC takes cognisance of these developments at a time when Article 370 has come up for hearing,” Mufti wrote in another tweet.

The PDP also said that they were denied permission to organise an event to mark the fourth anniversary of Article 370 abrogation. The roads leading to PDP headquarters were sealed and no one was allowed to enter the office, the party spokesperson said.

According to the report, Syed Suhail Bukhari, youth president Waheed ur Rehman Parra, state secretary Abdul Hameed Kohsheen, additional spokesperson Abdul Rouf Bhat, district chief Srinagar Abdul Qayoom Bhat and other party leaders and workers were detained.

Meanwhile, the National Conference (NC) leaders also said that the party headquarter Nawa-i-Subah was “sealed” and no one was allowed to go inside, reported PTI.

“True to form and in keeping with the clampdown on mainstream democratic activities organised by parties opposed to 5th Aug 2019, the JKNC office has been sealed by the police. No one is being allowed in or out of the office,” the party wrote on social media. “These steps betray the nervousness of the administration & render hollow their claims regarding great improvements in the last 4 years,” the post further read.

However, the police did not comment on the allegations of house arrest of the political leaders, according to PTI.