Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir police on Tuesday detained half a dozen people including sister and daughter of former chief minister Farooq Abdullah during a protest march against the abrogation of provisions of Article 370 of the constitution and bifurcation of the state into two union territories. According to reports, National Conference (NC) leader Abdullah's sister Suraiya and his daughter Safiya, who were leading a group of women activists, were detained by the police.

Farooq Abdullah and his son Omar Abdullah are already among hundreds of leaders of Jammu and Kashmir who are under house arrest after the Centre’s move on August 5 to scrap the state’s special status and divide it into two UTs.

Several Kashmiri women tried to organise a sit-in protest at Lal Chowk in Srinagar today. Wearing black armbands and holding placards, the women protesters were not allowed by the police personnel to assemble and were asked to disperse peacefully. However, the protestors refused to disperse and tried to stage a sit-in.

The women CRPF personnel rounded the protestors into police vehicles. The police also tried to stop the protesting women from distributing a statement to the media covering the protest. "We the women of Kashmir disapprove the unilateral decision taken by the government of India to revoke Article 370, 35A and downgrade and split the state of Jammu and Kashmir," the statement said.

Demanding restoration of civil liberties and fundamental rights of the citizens, the women said they feel "betrayed, humiliated and violated as people". They also demanded the immediate release of detainees and demilitarization of rural and urban areas.

"We express our outrage against the national media for their false/misleading coverage of ground realities in Kashmir," the statement added.

In a tweet slamming the Modi government for detaining Safiya and Suraiya Adbullah, Mehboooba Mufti said, "A 56 inch macho government that detains lady senior citizens and women for peacefully protesting. Curfew can be placed on a city but certainty not on feelings and thoughts. How many more voices will you smother? (sic)"


Mufti has also been place under house arrest by the Jammu and Kashmir administration and her Twitter handle is currently being operated by her daughter Iltija Mufti. Farooq's son and former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is detained in Hari Niwas. Farooq's brother and senior NC leader Mustafa Kamal has been detained at his home.

The J&K administration has justified the slapping of PSA on the National Conference president on the grounds that he has "tremendous potential to create public disorder in Srinagar and other parts of the Valley". The administration has cited several instances since 2016 when he made statements in conflict with the law.